Dueling
by MegaNerdAlert
Summary: -As the pair settles in the first night of the Duel-Off, a major Wizarding event that only takes place once every hundred years, Minerva's heart begins to beat a little faster as she recognizes the feelings bubbling to the surface of her mind. Feelings that she thought had been squashed more than twenty years ago. Feelings for Hermione.- MM/HG. Normal disclaimers apply.
1. Chapter 1

**Well, a shout out to those of you who helped me hit 100 reviews for "Alright". I really, really appreciate how much support you guys have offered me. Also, a shoutout to 'asouldreams', who's story "Bonding" was partly responsible for the development of this story. Those of you watching "Bonding" will remember a couple chapters in which the group did a dueling exercise - this story is all about a dueling compition, as you are about to find out. **

**This year for Nano, I have decided to write another MM/HG story, though as is tradition for Nano, each day's update will be at least 2000 words. Prior to adding my little comments here, this opening chapter is running just shy of 2500 words. I really hope you guys like this one. **

* * *

The Duel-Off was a major Wizarding event that only took place once every hundred years, always beginning on July first. Three regional contestants would be selected to all meet at a predetermined location, to compete in an adults only event which would leave one Wizard or Witch with the title of most powerful duelist of the age, as well as a one-hundred thousand Galleon purse. The last winner, in 1924, had been Albus Dumbledore. He had been forty-three at the time, just a bit younger than Hermione Weasley was now. Anyone over seventeen was allowed to compete, much like the Triwizard Tournament, though this event was more geared toward the middle aged Wizard or Witch.

This year the Duel-Off was to be held in America, in New York City, during the same weekend that a Comicon Convention was being held there - the Ministry representatives from the seven countries participating this year had agreed that Wizarding folk would have an easier time blending into the Muggle city if half the Muggles in it were al dressed up on strange costumed for their own event. The contestants, officials, and guests for the Duel-Off would be staying at the same large hotel that many of the Muggles were. The duels would take place in one of the hotel's large auditoriums, though the space had been magically enlarged, and warded so that whatever Muggle might walk by it would see an exhibit that they found dreadfully dull, and feel inclined to just pass on by without looking further. If someone did walk in, Aurors and Unspeakables would be on standby to take care of the situation.

One thing that was unique about this year's Duel-Off was that three champions were selected to represent half-breeds at the competition. Hermione had been pleased to find out about this. In years before, Wizards like Filius Flitwick would never have been allowed to be involved due to his Goblin blood. The current Deputy Headmaster of Hogwarts was one of the three representatives of the half-breed chapter.

Hermione knew alot of the people who were competing this year; she herself had been selected as one of the three English contestants. The other two were Harry Potter, her long time friend and the current Defense Professor at Hogwarts, and her own daughter, Rose Weasley, who had recently graduated from Hogwarts. It had been Harry that had suggested that Rose and Hermione both try out, as sort of a mother-daughter bonding thing. All three had been surprised when they were selected as England's representives.

Harry and Filius were not the only Hogwarts staff competing. Minerva McGonagall, the esteemed Headmistress and Hermione and Harry's former Transfiguration Professor, was representing Scotland. As Hermione scanned the list of finalists, she was surprised to see that all three Scotland competitors were McGonagalls. Aside from Minerva, both a Malcolm and a Robert McGonagall were listed. Hermione was resolved to ask Minerva if and how the three were related. Hermione had never heard Minerva talk about any close relatives, though she knew by reputation that Robert McGonagall was a Healer at St. Mungo's. She'd never thought to ask Minerva about her relation to the Mediwizard before, though in fairness it had been many years since Hermione had seen Minerva socially.

After the war ended, Hermione and Minerva had often met for tea or drinks at a pub. The regularity of this ended about the time Hermione had married Ron Weasley. After that, thier social visits were few and far between. In fact, outside of Owl post regarding her children, Rose and Hugo, Hermione had not been in contact with Minerva for at least ten years. Hermione was surprised to find that this sudden revelation upset her greatly. Once, she had found it intolerable to go very long without visiting with her former Professor. The brains of the Golden Trio thought hard about what might have changed, but each reason she came up with seemed flimsy, at best. It had just happened that way.

Hermione continued to scan the list and was pleased to see her old friend Viktor Krum representing Bulgaria, much as he had during the Tri-Wizard Tournament, so many years ago. A former classmate of hers, Seamus Finnigan, was representing his native home of Ireland, and along with Filius, Teddy Lupin and Tanner Hagrid represented the half-breeds chapter. She had known Teddy was planning to try out. Like his mother, the son of werewolf Remus Lupin did not know how to shut up. Hermione was glad he'd gotten picked. If anyone deserved a chance at fame and glory, it was him. Tanner Hagrid was the son of her own dear from Rubius Hagrid, who had been Gamekeeper and later Care of Magical Creatures Professor during her own time at Hogwarts. Shortly after the war, he'd chosen to retire in order to take proper care of his son, who had been born via a one-night stand with a Witch Hagrid Senior had met at the pub one night. The Witch had wanted nothing to do with Hagrid in the morning, and had only agreed to carry the baby they'd conceived on condition that Hagrid take full responsibility for the child from day one. She had wanted nothing to do with her son, either. Hagrid had never told a soul the witch's name, not even Tanner.

Some of the others on the list were names she recognized by reputation, or had met in passing over the years, but nobody she had any sort of relationship with. A beep on Hermione's watch reminded her that the Portkey to take her to New York was nearing departure, so the woman gripped her suitcase, folded the parchment of names and placed it in her pocket, and took hold of the golden wand which had been sent to each competitor weeks before; a courtesy Portkey to take each person directly to an area of Central Park which had been warded against Muggles for the afternoon. From there, Wizards and Witches going to the Duel-Off had been to make their own way to the hotel, Muggle style. The information Hermione had been given suggested that people would arrive at the park in groups of four, so that no one was wandering the strange city alone.

With a pop, Hermione arrived in New York City. Seconds later, she heard three other pops in sequence, and Hermione turned to see none other than Minerva McGonagall, along with two men. "Minerva!" Hermione called, smiling brightly.

"Hermione, good to see you!" The older Witch smiled in return, before scowling as the younger of the two men elbowed her. "Malcolm!" she snapped. "Watch who you're poking!"

Hermione watched as the man grinned. "Oh, lighten up Min. You're on vacation."

"This is not vacation," Minerva argued. "This is a -"

"Prestigious event which we should all be proud to be invited to," the other, older man finished for her. "Blah, blah, blah. Bloody hell, Minerva, not everyone in the world feels a maddening draw to live up to a dead man's expectations, some of us just want to enjoy ourselves."

Minerva turned her glare to the older man, and was about to begin chewing him out when the first man, Malcolm, interrupted. "Let's not argue in front of the pretty lady," he said, shouldering his bag. "Hermione, is that what my sister called you?"

Hermione, who had been watching the exchange with amusement, nodded. "Hermione Gra...Weasley, pardon me. Minerva seems to make me forget that I am not a student at Hogwarts, unwed and without my own children she teaches," the younger witch replied. In fact, she had made the slip on purpose. It was her subtle way of letting Malcolm McGonagall, Minerva's brother by the sounds of it, know that she was unavailable and would he kindly not flirt.

Hermione saw Minerva smile coyly, and she knew her former Professor had caught on to her scheme. "Don't let Malcolm bother you, my dear," the older Witch said. "My younger brother flirts with anything female on two legs, yet he still has not found a woman to call his own. My elder brother Robert," she continued, turning to face the other man, "is far better a conversationalist should you need one."

Hermione stepped up to the plate and joined the banter. "If I desired good conversation, I think I'm already talking to the most qualified companion."

Robert hooted with laughter. "No wonder Min speaks so highly of you, Mrs. Weasley. If I didn't know any better I'd say you had some McGonagall blood in you!"

"I'm afraid not," Hermione replied. "My parents were Muggle dentists."

"You don't say!" Malcolm exclaimed. "I've never met an actual dentist before!" Hermione suddenly concluded that Malcolm and her father-in-law, Arthur Weasley, would get along well.

Minerva, who had quietly shrunk all of their luggage, offered her arm to Hermione. "Shall we start heading toward's the hotel?" she inquired.

Hermione stared at Minerva's outstretched hand for a few seconds before taking it, surprised to feel her heart beginning to beat faster and harder at Minerva's proximity. Why the blazes was that? Hermione wanted to know. However, she was not going to find out in the next few seconds, so she took the older witch's arm and forced a smile. "Let's," she replied, and the group was off.

* * *

Minerva McGonagall had never been one for attachments, particularly not human attachments. It was very cat-like of her, she liked to think. She'd been married, once, and quite briefly. Most people who got wind of the fact that she'd ever married assumed that her husband was killed in one of the wars, leaving her a widow. Truth of the matter was that their marriage had lasted a total of twenty-nine days before she'd gotten fed up with him and filed for divorce. They'd remained friends for years after, till he had diedl; Minerva was just not good at being tied down.

Minerva had no children, nor had she ever desired any. She didn't hate children by any means, she just had not felt that she was the mother type. It was one thing to deal with children day in and day out, if they were old enough to feed and dress themselves. If Minerva was ever in a position with a child under the age of ten, she found herself at a loss for what to do. Minerva often guessed that this had something to do with how she'd been a first year at Hogwarts when her brother Malcolm was born, and Robert had been in his second year by the time she herself had been born. Minerva's mother had often commented on how the day Minerva met Malcolm for the first time, over her Christmas break from Hogwarts during her first year, the look on her face had been something akin to a cat under threat of a bath. It had not been until Minerva was in her late twenties before she and either of her brothers got close. They'd just been so far apart in age that until they were all adults, there was little common ground to build upon.

She, Robert, Malcolm, and Hermione had arrived via a nice languorous walk to the hotel about an hour ago, and were all settling into their rooms. Because of the Comicon Convention in the same hotel, the number of rooms available were short, meaning that people had to share. Each hotel room had two queen sized beds, and each room was housing four people. Minerva had been bunked with Danielle McCoy, from Ireland, along with Hermione and Rose Weasley. The older Witch was loathe to share a bed with a total stranger, and prefered not to share a bed with someone who'd so recently been a student. That in mind, Minerva had suggested the Rose and Danielle share a bed, as they were close in age, leaving Minerva to share with Hermione. It wasn't until later that Minerva regretted instigating that arrangement.

After a nice welcoming dinner, in which Minerva also managed to catch up with a few other former students and a couple of the foreigners she had become acquainted with over the course of her travels, she'd bid her brothers a good night and taken the elevator to the fifth floor to join Hermione, who had got up about a half hour before, claiming she had an Owl to write before going to bed. By the time Minerva got to the room, the lights were off and Hermione was already in bed, her figure being illuminated by night-light in the wall. Neither Rose nor Danielle had come up to the room as of yet, though with them being considerably younger, Minerva didn't expect they would be up for several more hours. Filius had mentioned an open bar being available till eleven.

"Hermione?" Minerva asked quietly.

"Come to bed," the younger woman muttered, though by the amount of slur in her voice, Minerva guessed that Hermione was on the edge of sleep.

Minerva said nothing as she flicked her wand and transfigured her robe into a modest nightgown. She sat on the edge of the bed and unpinned her hair, something she'd always insisted on doing without magic, and watched as Hermione's chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. The younger woman was wearing a loose tank top and presumably a pair of equally comfortable pants, though her lower half was covered by blankets. Hermione lay on her back, slightly hard nipples obvious through the thin material.

Minerva blushed as she realized she was looking at Hermione's breasts with more interest than she should. Then, her heart began to beat a little faster as she recognized the feelings bubbling to the surface of her mind. Feelings that she thought had been squashed more than twenty years ago. Feelings for Hermione.

* * *

**Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, here's chapter two. The Duel-Off has begun! Thank you all for your reviews on chapter one, looking forward to your thoughts as the story progresses! **

* * *

The next morning was rushed as everyone shuffled about trying to figure out where they needed to be. Round one would last through Friday, three duels per day. The schedule indicated that today's duelists would be Minerva McGonagall at her brother Robert, Seamus Finnigan at one of the Polish duelists; Edgar Wikinski, and then a Frenchman named Jean DeLuc at Hermione's old friend, Viktor Krum. Hermione was looking forward to seeing the people from different countries and how they fought differently. She knew from talking to Viktor that the spells taught at Hogwarts and the spells taught at Durmstrug were different, and she figured the same applied to the other Wizarding schools around.

"You're up first, with Robert, correct?" Hermione asked Minerva as they ate breakfast in the hotel lounge.

"Yes, though I wish they had not selected him to go against me," Minerva replied after taking a sip of tea.

"Why?"

"I'm going to loose," Robert, who had evidently been eavesdropping, answered from the next table. "Minerva likes to not be certain of victory. She thinks there's no fun in an easy win."

"Surely you're a good dueler," Hermione said to Robert, raising her eyebrows at his input. "You would not be here if you weren't."

"Sure I am," Robert replied with a shrug. "But not nearly as good as her, and she knows it."

Minerva huffed. "Robert chose his profession so they he'd never have to see a real duel, always certain to be behind the battle lines. Bloody coward."

Robert sighed. "It's true," he admitted to Hermione. Life of a mediwizard is pretty safe. In reality I only agreed to participate in this event to ensure that Minerva and Malcolm don't get killed."

"I don't need your help, Robert." Minerva said crisply. "I have not needed you to look after me in quite a few years."

Robert's eyes got dark. "Of course. Albus stole that duty from me," he replied stiffly. "And where is your hero now, Minerva?"

Robert got up from the table and stalked off, not waiting for an answer.

"Albus?" Hermione said, surprised at Robert's attitude. "As in Dumbledore?"

Minerva nodded, eyes trailing after her older brother for a moment. "Robert and Albus never got on well, though they were classmates at Hogwarts, and once upon a time, they were very close friends. I got to know Albus through Robert, actually."

"Well he obviously does not think highly of Dumbledore now," Hermione observed. "What happened, if it's not too rude to ask?"

"It's a long story," Minerva replied quietly. "But suffice to say that when Robert needed Albus the most, Albus was not available to him. Teenage anger is long lived and unforgiving, though Albus said years later that had they had the same argument as adults, it would never have cost them their friendship."

Hermione nodded, but did not press for more details. She knew Minerva well enough to know she'd get no further explanation, and besides, it was nearly time for the duels to begin. Robert had probably already gone down to the Dueling Hall. "I'm sorry to hear that Robert thinks so little of Dumbledore," she said as the two stood to go. "He was a great man."

Minerva smirked. "Albus was a man, and one must never forget that men are...let's just say that they often cannot see past the end of their own noses. He made mistakes, same as any one else, one of which cost your own dear friend the chance for a happy childhood."

"Harry?" Hermione inquired at the reference.

"Yes. Along with Albus and Robert, Aaron Potter, which would be Harry's grandfather, was also a Gryffindor of that era. When James and Lily died, Robert offered to take Harry in, but Albus would not allow it. He had good reasons for wanting Harry with his Aunt - "

"The blood wards," Hermione interjected, knowing what Minerva was referring to.

"Yes," Minerva replied. "Yet in the end I do think, as many others do, that Harry would have been better off raised just about anywhere else. Alas, Albus never was very good at being wrong, and therefore, things played out as they did."

"But by then," Hermione said thoughtfully, "Robert and Dumbledore had already had their falling out. So Harry's upbringing was not what caused the rift."

"No," Minerva said, a slight smile on her lips. "It was not."

* * *

Minerva adored how observant Hermione was about everything. Had she been having this conversation with anyone else, they would have assumed that the situation was Harry Potter had been the event they broke her brother's friendship with Albus. Only Hermione would have caught Minerva's comment about it being an argument of teenagers.

Robert really was infuriating sometimes, though. She would enjoy wiping his arrogant face on the dueling mat in a few minutes, despite that he had accurately observed she did not like easy wins. In this case, she was mad enough that the anger usurped the personal preference.

Minerva's thoughts were interrupted by Hermione's voice, and surprisingly, her touch.

"Good luck," Hermione said, squeezing Minerva's hand gently. "I have to go find a seat where I wont get hit by the wayward hexes you're about to throw at Robert."

Minerva pursed her lips, and with all seriousness, she replied. "I do not intend to miss my target."

Hermione laughed as she walked away, waving. Minerva had only about a minute to relish the residue of the warmth the younger Witch's touch had left on her hand before a referee tapped her on the shoulder, and told her where to position herself. She looked up to see Robert at the opposite side of the mat, looking as equally irritated as she probably had a minute before. Minerva gripped her wand, and at the referee's cue, both she and Robert marched forward to meet in the middle of the mat.

The pair bowed.

"You'll be down in thirty seconds," Minerva hissed.

"I'll last two minutes," Robert replied crisply. "Just to piss you off."

Minerva huffed as the two turned around and walked the standard ten paces back toward their respective starting points before the referee signaled again, and both turned around quickly. The duel had begun.

"Stupify!" Minerva shouted, shooting the spell at her brother.

Robert easily deflected the curse with a wandless Shield Charm, rapidly firing a series of hexes back at Minerva.

As if dancing, Minerva stepped out of the way of each of the spells he'd cast, all the while beginning to weave a series of transfiguration spells which created a flock of birds from some of the stuffing in the mat below Robert's feet. "Oppugno!" Minerva shouted, sending the flock of birds swarming toward her brother, who found his footing compromised by a lack of padding in random areas below him. As Robert made the mistake of putting his full attention to the birds - trying to turn them to dust with a more complex Shield Charm which Minerva _knew_ that Albus had taught him years ago - Minerva wandlessly summoned Robert's wand from his hand, leaving him defenseless.

The moment Robert's wand touched her own fingertips, the referee signaled the duel to be over, with Minerva as the winner. Minerva looked at the clock on the wall. "One minute, fifteen seconds," she muttered to herself. "Wasted time by making too many birds."

Robert approached her seconds later, grabbing his wand out of Minerva's hand. "You are such a bitch," he said with a wry grin, spitting out feathers as he walked away.

* * *

Hermione smiled as Minerva took a seat next to her in the bleachers, prepared to watch the next two duels. "I didn't expect it to be over that quickly," the younger Witch commented.

"I thought it might have been over about forty-five seconds sooner," Minerva replied with a smile. "Harry was dueling better by his third year at Hogwarts than Robert did just now. He let his emotions get in the way of his concentration."

Hermione nodded, understanding. "Rose is an emotional dueler, though she and Harry agree that it works if controlled. Patroni, for example, must be fueled by emotion, or they are not effective in defending against Dementors."

"I am looking forward to seeing Rose duel," Minerva said. "I knew she was gifted, by Harry's comments over the years. As both her teacher and her uncle, he's quite proud of her."

"Speak of the devil," Hermione said, seeing Harry approaching them. "We were just talking about you, or rather you and Rose."

A goofy grin plastered on the dark haired man's face. "My star pupil," he said, taking a seat. "Ron can't duel for shit, despite being an Auror. Rose must have gotten in from you, 'Mione."

Hermione shook her head. "Ginny is a fair dueler, Harry," she argued with her long time friend. Rose certainly has my focus, but personality wise she is far more of a Weasley than Granger. Hugo is the Granger of the two."

"Perhaps," Harry shrugged.

"The second match is starting," Hermione heard Minerva say, and she and Harry both turned their attention to the second pair of duelers.

"Seamus and that Polish guy," Harry commented.

"Wickinski," Hermione said, putting a name to the face. "Edgar. He the oldest person competing, and the only one who was also at the 1924 Duel-Off. He came in second, right behind Albus Dumbledore."

"How'd you know all that?" Harry asked his friend.

"The information is in a number of history texts, as well as in some of the dueling books you reference for your seventh year's," Minerva replied for Hermione. "Honestly Harry, don't you read?"

Harry looked at Minerva, and then at Hermione, at which point the two friends burst out laughing.

"What?" Minerva asked sharply, clearly not getting what was funny.

Hermione bit her lip in an effort to calm her self. "Minerva, I said almost the exact same thing to Harry and Ron during our first year at Hogwarts."

"Yea, it was before we were used to her knowing everything," Harry added. "At this point, anytime I ask her how she knows something, it's mostly a rhetorical question."

"I see," Minerva replied.

* * *

Unlike Minerva's own duel, the other two lasted at least an hour each. Seamus Finnigan beat Edgar, though the old Polish man certainly made the younger Irish man work for it. Minerva suspected that Edgar was really only competing to say he'd been at this event twice - something few Wizards could claim as it only happened once every hundred years. The third duel was between Viktor Krum, who Minerva remember from the year of the Triwizard Tournament at Hogwarts when Harry and Hermione were still students, beat the Frenchman, DeLuc, with similar difficulty. It encouraged Minerva to know that not everyone would be as easily beated as Robert had been.

Though the duels were over by lunch time, they would not continue round one with the next three pairs until the following day, leaving the whole afternoon free. As her brothers seemed to have found better company with some of the other competitors, Minerva spent the afternoon with Hermione and Harry, mostly catching up with Hermione, as she saw Harry all the time at Hogwarts.

Minerva had often wondered what Hermione had done with her life, after her married to Ronald Weasley and the lack of contact between the two women had begun. The Headmistress of Hogwarts had always pictured Hermione as a teacher, and was surprised to find out that Hermione had done little more with her life other than privately developing new spells under a pseudonym which Minerva recognized immediately when Hermione confessed that she was 'Katheryn White'. Later, as the two were laying in the dark bedroom together, as once again Rose and Danielle were no where to be found, Minerva plucked up the courage to ask Hermione why she'd never gotten into teaching.

"I was afraid to," Hermione replied quietly.

"Afraid of what, my dear?" Minerva asked, placing her hand on the younger woman's cheek.

Hermione nuzzled the older woman's hand before laying her head down on the pillow. "That I'd spend my life in your shadow, and never live up to what you hoped I would be."

* * *

**Oh yes, I am leaving you hanging there! Muuhahaha! Please review! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay guys, this chapter is a bit on the short side, but I'm exhausted. I promise to make up for it tomorrow. I do say, it is remarkably difficult to show every duel in a way that is interesting and not repetitive. Kuddos to "asouldreams" for how she managed to do that very thing in her "Bonding" tale.**

* * *

Hermione had not made further comment after expressing her fears of letting Minerva down on Tuesday night. Rose and Danielle had barged in not seconds later, causing Minerva to promptly pull away from Hermione and settle onto her own pillow. Wednesday morning did not leave time for discussing the matter further either, as it was another rush to get up, showered and dressed, and downstairs for breakfast before the duels began again.

First up today was Filius Flitwick and Annika Jones. Annika was dueling for America, though her father was British by birth - a relative of Hestia Jones, who had been a member of the Order during the Second Wizarding War. Annika was in her mid thirties, and Minerva knew little about her. She hoped that the young woman was up to the challenge that Filius would present her. The stout man was an expert at Charms and a very good dueler. If she wasn't careful, Filius might charm her hair on backwards, leaving her virtually blind and in a very bad position to defend herself.

Alas, as the duel began, the dark haired woman did give Minerva's friend a good workout. She was quick on her feet, and manged to dodge enough spells to make Filius' normal routine of layering charms ineffective. If he could not hit her with the right series of charms, the combo which he'd been trying to pull together for a win became impossible. In contrast, Annika took advantage of Filius' lack of agility by making snakes pop up out of the mat below his feet. She could not have known the Charms Professor loathed snakes, and Filius manged to banish them away quickly enough to not cause him too much of a problem.

In the end, almost two hours later, Annika's movements got the best of her, as she wore herself out enough to slow her down, and Filius did a refrain of his opening tactic; a complex series of charms that in the end, she was not able to dodge. Minerva clapped loudly for her friend, chuckling as the half-Goblin plopped on the mat in exhaustion.

"Filius did wonderfully," Minerva heard Hermione say from behind her. Hermione had not been sitting with her while Filius dueled, as she was in the second round and had elected to do some warm up exercises from a safe distance.

"Yes he did," Minerva agreed. "Though Jones was a fairly difficult opponent for him."

"I'm glad I didn't have to duel her," Hermione agreed. "I'm already worried about dueling Malcolm. It's my understanding that he's better than Robert, but not as good as you."

Minerva nodded. "That would be a fair assessment. Though at risk of sounding egotistical, few are as good at dueling as I am."

"I doubt I'll have to worry about dueling you, Minerva," Hermione said, smiling. "I expect to be eliminated no later than round two, and that's assuming I beat your brother."

"I don't think I've ever seen you duel, Hermione," Minerva mused. "At least, not since the war, which was quite a long time ago now."

"That might be because I haven't dueled publically since the war," Hermione replied. "Not that I haven't been practicing. For our fifth anniversary, Ron had a room in our house renovated to act as a safe place for dueling, so I could test spells out without fear of harming the children or burning the house to the ground."

"That was thoughtful of him," Minerva replied. "Speaking of Ronald, why is he not here? Surely with both his wife and daughter involved, he'd come watch?"

"No," Hermione sighed. "He and Hugo are off on a camping trip. I can't believe after living in a tent the year we were on the run that he can stand camping at all, but he and Hugo go every summer, for about a month. I don't actually think I've seen Ron for more than ten minutes at a time in the last year, to be honest."

Minerva was stunned. What kind of husband and wife didn't ever see each other, when there was no good reason for it? "Couldn't Ron take some time off work to spend time with you?" she asked, thinking that the red-haired man's vocation was the most probable cause of his absence. "Or is money tight enough that he really needs the hours?"

Hermione shook her head. "We could live off of my income alone. Every time someone uses a spell I've created, I get fourteen Knuts. That's may be a small number, but it adds up when you've got an average of two thousand uses of my spells per day - I end up making about eighteen-hundred Galleons per month. My children want for nothing. Ron's income is merely spending money for him - I pay all the household bills and still have plenty to put in savings, or do whatever else I wish with. In reality, I would have made a smaller income _had _I become a teacher. Average Hogwarts salary is what - sixteen thousand per year?"

Minerva smirked. "Closer to twenty, actually, though most of the teachers take the top fifteen percent and use it to supplement the budget for our respective departments. I do see your point, though. Back on topic, if Ronald does not need to work, why does he?"

"To keep away from me, I expect," Hermione said with a level of nonchalance that again surprised the older Witch.

"What?" Minerva gaped, no longer able to hide her shock.

Hermione crossed her arms and frowned. "Of all people, Minerva, I would have thought you'd be least surprised to find that my and Ron's marriage is little more than public appearance."

"WEASLEY!" the referee shouted from across the room. "YOU'RE UP! STOP CHATTING!"

Minerva didn't have time to reply to Hermione's last comment before the younger woman turned and stalked away without another word. Minerva sat back down in her seat and looked toward the dueling mat, still quite shaken by what Hermione had just divulged.

* * *

Hermione had not been planning to tell Minerva about her troubles with Ron, if that's what they were. The pair didn't argue often, not anymore than they ever had, anyway, they just had nothing in common, and Harry no longer lived with them and acted like the glue that held them together. After Hogwarts, the three had gotten a flat together, as if it was just a new dorm. Hermione and Ron had been a couple by then, but Harry and Ginny had decided to take a year or two before resuming thier relationship. For Harry and Ginny, that turned into about four years before they got a place together on thier own, and by then, Hermione and Ron were already engaged. By the time the two realized that they were drifting apart without Harry there to hold them together, it was a few weeks before their wedding was set to be. They got married, tried to explore interests they might share, and eventually they became little more than a muggle country song* Hermione was crying herself to sleep by.

The brown-eyed Witch did not have time to dwell, however, as she knew that any lapse in concentration would cost her the match with Malcolm McGonagall. Hermione had no grand delusions of winning the Duel-Off, but this match, against Minerva's brother...Hermione found herself once again feeling an irresistable need to impress her former Professor._ She really ought to make time to ponder why that was, later_, Hermione thought to herself.

Bow. Ten paces. Turn. Wand at the ready. Go!

Hermione managed to fire the first spell; one of her own creation which if cast with enough power, dissolved a standard Shield Charm, which Hermione expected that Malcolm would be holding. She followed it up with a standard, non verbal disarming charm, and to the stunned silence of the entire room, Malcolm McGonagall's wand clattered to the ground at her feet. The only thing he'd managed to do was get a Shield up.

"Holy bloody shit," Malcolm said, loud enough that everyone in the silence filled room heard.

"Do you contest the legitimacy of the win?" The referee asked Malcolm.

"No sir," Malcolm replied, awe in his tone. "That was brilliant. I've never seen that spell, and I only know one Witch as quick as all that."

Hermione knew that he was talking about Minerva, and her chest swelled with a pride she'd not felt in years. The match's winner could feel the eyes of the Headmistress boring through her, and her heart ached to know what the Scottish woman was thinking just now.

* * *

Minerva didn't see Hermione during the last duel for the day, which was Tanner Hagrid at Hector Kovach. Kovach was good, but had not accounted for Tanner's giant blood, which meant that Tanner didn't have to waste energy on Shield Charms for most spells that he could simply absorb. After the final duel of the day, it was time for a late lunch, and then a few hours were left before people settled in for the night.

With Hermione's admittance of how little she'd dueled over the last decade or so, it had surprised Minerva how quickly she'd disarmed Malcolm. Minerva's younger brother was no rookie. He knew what he was doing. Minerva had expected Hermione to challenge him, perhaps even beat him, but not that quickly. It had been considered an incredibly short duel yesterday, between herself and her elder brother Robert. Today, Hermione had won the match in less than twenty seconds. Minerva found herself feeling a bit jealous of the victory, though it was no understatement to say she was impressed.

There was no conversation as the pair settled in for the night, mostly due to the surprising presence of Danielle, who said that Rose was off with 'some guy', and she'd become the third wheel. As Minerva was drifting off to sleep, she found herself again thinking about the feelings she'd thought had been buried years ago. Minerva would never deny that she was not strictly heterosexual, and after the war was over, she'd found herself becoming increasingly attracted to the Witch that now lay in bed beside her. After Hermione had married Ron, those feelings had been pushed aside, especially once their regular meetings had ceased.

Today, somewhere between finding out that Hermione was in a less than happy marriage, and the younger Witch showing Minerva beyond any doubt that she was capable of equaling the older woman, those feelings seemed closer and more threatening than they ever had before, and questions of 'what if' began to surface in Minerva's mind.

* * *

**Please Review!**

*** Just a note, I was listening to "Absence of the Heart", by Deanna Carter, and then "I'm Tired of Loving This Way", by Collin Raye when I was trying to explain what happened to Hermione and Ron's marriage. Great songs, if you want to give them a listen.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Ahha! I got this chapter up before midnight. And it's just about 300 words over my goal mark. Aren't you guys lucky ducks today? Hope you enjoy. This chapter is rather angsty, and I so love angst. :)**

* * *

Hermione sometimes forgot that she was no longer Hermione Granger, especially when in the company of Harry Potter. Today her long time friend was dueling, and his wife Ginny had come out to watch, along with two of the couple's three children. Their oldest, James, was interning with an Irish Potions master, and was at a critical stage in brewing some potion, which would not allow for his absence. Harry, of course, was understanding. To have Ginny, Albus, and Lily there was enough.

Albus Potter was Rose's age, and had also just graduated from Hogwarts. The young man did not seem to have any particular idea of what he wanted to do with his life, and as far as anyone knew, he wasn't seeing anyone. All that Albus would say was that he would not stay living at his parents' house past September, even if it meant getting some menial job somewhere in the Muggle world to get by. Hermione knew that Harry and Ginny tried not to pressure him in any way, but Hermione suspected that the shy young man was in much the same position that she had been, at his age; wanting so many things out of life but not knowing where to start, and being keenly aware of how much was expected of him. Hermione only hoped that Albus would not make the same mistake she did, in settling for something less than what she really had wanted.

Hermione inwardly cringed at the amount of regrets that Minerva's constant poking and prodding into her life had turned up. Why couldn't the older Witch just leave well enough alone? Why did she have to make Hermione want... more?

Lily Potter, Harry's youngest, would be entering her final year at Hogwarts this September, just as Hermione's son, Hugo would. Of the cousins, Lily and Hugo were by far the closest. Hermione often wondered that if the two were not cousins, if perhaps they would have ended up as a couple. Of course, that would never happen in this day and age, though sixty or so years ago, it was not uncommon for Wizarding cousins to marry. Granted, the Weasley family had never, even two hundred years ago, been party to the cousin marriages that made so many of the modern Wizarding families inner related, and plagued by genetic disorders as an effect of the inbreeding. No, Hugo and Lily were close, as a brother and sister might be, but certainly not _that_ close. After his yearly camping trip with Ron, Hugo would most likely spend most of what remained of the summer over at the Potter's. Both Rose and Hugo usually made plans to be anywhere but home during the summer break.

It broke Hermione's heart to realize that neither of her children liked being at home. It was her fault, she knew. Once she and Ron had realized that their marriage was a farce, though neither of them had ever admitted it out loud, the Weasley house had ceased to be a home. It was so far away from what the Burrow, Ron's childhood home, had been. Growing up, Ron had been poor, but he always knew where home was. Now, Ron wanted for nothing, but not he, Hermione, or the kids knew where home was.

"Hermione?"

Hermione turned to see Minerva standing beside her, concern in her eyes. "Yes?"

"What wrong?" the Scottish Witch asked. "You looked so far away, and sad, just a moment ago. What were you thinking of?"

Hermione sighed. "I was merely musing over regrets," she replied. "Everyone has them, I know."

Minerva smiled weakly. "Yes, everyone regrets at least one thing in their lives. It is regretting everything that we must be careful to avoid."

* * *

Minerva found herself once again seated next to Hermione as the first duel of the morning began, between James Roland and Fleur Weasley. Danielle, Rose's bunkmate, made a point to pass their way and inform then that James Roland was "the guy Rose has been drooling over all week". Minerva had to admit, the young American man was quite handsome, and Hermione pointed out that Rose was seated as close to his as she could with the referee shouting at her.

Fleur, of course, was another of the Weasley clan - though French by birth. She'd met Bill Weasley at some point after the Triwizard Tournament. Harry had mentioned this morning at breakfast that Fleur had suggested that she, Harry, and Viktor Krum have dinner one night soon. It was the first time all of the Champions had begin together since Cedric Diggory's funeral. Viktor had returned to Bulgaria right after the funeral, though it was several years before Fleur returned to France. Viktor had returned to England several times over the years, though he had never gone out of his way to seek out Fleur or Harry. Minerva smiled inwardly at the memory of Hermione once mentioning that Viktor always made time to have lunch with her when he was in the area.

"DUEL!" Minerva heard the referee shout, and both she and Hermione turned their attention to Fleur and the American, James Roland.

There was a loud BANG as both duelers shot disarming charm at the same time, and the spells collided. Fleur recovered first, put up a wandless shield while sending a bat-boggie hex toward Roland. The French woman had obviously spend plenty of time swapping ideas with her sister-in-law, Ginny. Roland side stepped the hex, barely, and countered by transfiguring the bats Fleur had cast into a swarm of bees, which he redirected back to Fleur.

That fancy bit of Transfiguration had Minerva's attention.

"That was clever," Hermione mused.

"Yes," Minerva replied, leaning forward in her seat and adjusting her glasses.

The pair continued to duel - most often Fleur sending charmed aggressors at Roland, and him countering by way of transfiguration and redirection. It was a very unorthodox way to deal with that type of hexes, but Minerva admired how the young man was making Fleur do ninety percent of the work. She suspected he was waiting for her to tire a bit before really beginning his own attack.

Fleur, however, was quite fit and it took nearly three hours before she began to slow. Hermione had commented at one point how Roland did not seem to be running out of creative ways to counter, as to the two women's reckoning, he had not used the same transfiguration twice. He'd done bees, crickets, snakes, flying keys, rats, spiders, wolves, cats (Minerva had loved that one!), paper airplanes, steaming tea bags, slugs, and even once had turned Fleur's snowstorm into thousands of little white beads, which had nearly cost Fleur her footing. It was by far one of the more interesting duels either Minerva or Hermione had ever seen.

The French Witch did, however, eventually tire, and as Minerva had expected, Roland began to more aggressively attack after that. He'd opened his attack with a spell that Hermione had created, which caused her to yelp in surprise, as it was not one currently available to the public, though it had been approved by the Ministry. The referee did not object to the usage, which was good for Roland as Fleur was unable to defend against it, and thirty seconds later, the young American had disarmed her.

"Rose must have taught him that one," Minerva mused, when Hermione explained why she was so surprised.

"I think they are spending more time together than even Danielle is aware of," Hermione speculated. "The way Rose is acting, I'd venture to say she's falling in love with this man."

"He is rather handsome," Minerva replied. "And love is a wonderous thing."

"Yes, it is," Hermione agreed, eyes drifting downward.

"See, there you go again, Hermione," Minerva said crisply. "Are things with Ronald truly that bad? Is there no love at all in your marriage?"

Hermione crossed her arms, looking ashamed. "There is love," she said, "but not the kind one wants to have in a marriage. It's a love that lingers because we raised two children together, and because of a lifetime of friendship and respect."

Minerva waiting for Hermione to continue, who seemed to be struggling as to what to say next. "Go on," the older Witch encouraged.

"I'd give anything to experience the kind of love Rose seems to be feelings now," Hermione confessed. "I'm not sure I ever really have."

"I felt that kind of love, once," Minerva found herself admitting. "It was many years ago, though."

"Who was he?" Hermione asked.

"She," Minerva replied quietly. "Was once a student of mine. I could have loved her for the rest of my life, though she found someone else, and within a few years of her graduation, I became nothing more than a memory to her."

Minerva hoped Hermione didn't press further that that, and was grateful when Hermione simply nodded. She had no idea what she would have said if the Witch beside her had pushed for the name of the girl, because the name of the girl was Hermione Granger - and the woman sitting beside her now was the shadow which was all that was left of the younger woman Minerva had fallen in love with all those years ago. The problem was, Minerva thought to herself solemnly, that in the last week, Minerva had begun to fall in love all over again, and the Hermione of today was spoken for, no matter how unhappy a marriage it might be.

* * *

Hermione and Minerva got lunch after Roland's win over Fleur. The powers that be had decided that there was little chance that the next duel, Harry Potter against Jadi Hudzinski, would be over before the noon hour, so they'd elected to leave the second and third duels for the afternoon. The Duel-Off resumed at one-thirty, at which point Harry managed a win against the Polish girl.

Jadi Hudzinski, Harry had told the two women over lunch, had been one of his very first students when he began teaching at Hogwarts. She had been in Slytherin, and like many Slytherins before her, and many since, she'd had a major problem with the Defence part of '_Defence_ Against the Dark Arts'. She'd gotten this far in the Polish chapter of the Duel-Off primaries because she was very aggressive, and rather quick, but much like Fleur the round before, she'd eventually tired, and Harry had finished her off with little more than a Patronus as a distraction and '_expelliarmus'_; the same spell Harry had defeated Voldemort with.

The final round, which had begun by three in the afternoon, was between Rose's bunkmate, Danielle McCoy, and the third Ireland native, Patrick O'Connell. That match had lasted a good two hours as well, and until the last second, no one was sure who would come out on top. Both duelers were good, and they seemed to be reasonably well matched. In the end, O'Connell was the winner, apparently having a more extensive knowledge of charms than Danielle had.

Dinner followed the last match of the day, and Hermione and Minerva both elected to retire after that. Danielle was already half way through a bottle of muggle Vodka, quite obviously drowning the sorrow of her loss. Rose and James Roland were also at the bar, working their way through a bottle of wine.

"Oh, too be young again!" Hermione laughed as she and Minerva closed the door to their room behind them. "I wish I knew where the nearest Potions shop was in this city - I'd go fetch some hangover potion and join the children."

"And what would you be drinking to?" Minerva asked. "Or for?"

Hermione huffed. "Sometimes it's not an issue of celebration or drowning sorrows, Professor. Sometimes it's just nice to get sloshed for the hell of it."

"Professor?" Minerva asked, quirking her eyebrow. "You haven't called me that in years, Miss Granger."

Hermione moved closer to Minerva, and could feel her body beginning to tingle. All day long, sitting by Minerva, she'd been overwhelmed by the sheer amount of chemistry that existed between them. When Minerva had been talking about the female student she'd once loved, Hermione had been stunned into silence at the jealousy she felt roaring in her chest. If Minerva could have fallen in love with a female student, why couldn't it have been her?

Somewhere throughout the day, Hermione had begun to realize that she had, deep down inside, always harbored some sort of feelings for the woman standing in front of her. The nectar of the fresh understanding and the downright taboo of the subject made Hermione feel more alive than she had in years. She both hated and loved this feeling. No matter what, she knew it would lead to nothing. She was married. Minerva had probably been a young professor at the time she'd fallen for a student - Hermione knew Minerva had been teaching since her late twenties. There was no way anything could, or ever would develop between them, more than the friendship they'd spent the last few days rekindling.

Nonetheless, Hermione found at least some part of her wishing she could go back in time and change everything. What would her life have been like, if she had been that student Minerva loved? If they had gotten together? If she'd gone into teaching, as Minerva had expected her to? If Rose and Hugo had been _their _children?

"Hermione?" Minerva said, interrupting her thoughts.

"I was just thinking," the younger woman replied, reality snapping back into place. "Of how much simpler life was then, while I was young, and yours were the only expectations I cared about."

* * *

**Please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**First of all, I am sorry I didn't update yeterday. I'm dealing with a pinched nerve in my back which makes sitting long enough to type 2k rather difficult to do. I am feeling better today, enough that I could get Chapter 5 put together for you. I realize that as a NaNo project, this puts me a day behind schedule, and as soon as I'm back to 100%, I will try and double up on a day and give you two chapters in one day to make up for yesterday. That said, enjoy another very emo chapter of "Dueling". **

* * *

It was the last day of round one. So far, both Minerva and Hermione, along with Harry Potter, Seamus Finnigan, Patrick O'Connell, Filius Flitwick, Tanner Hagrid, James Roland, and Viktor Krum, were slotted to move to round two. There were three more slots to fill for round two, and those would be decided before the day was out. Minerva had bets placed on Rose Weasley over Penny Baginiski, though she was not familiar enough with the other two pairs of duelers to really speculate. It was just a matter of wait and see.

It was obvious that something between Minerva and Hermione had changed in the last week, and it had nothing to do with the fact that they had not seen each other in so long. Minerva had been careful when telling Hermione about the student she'd fallen in love with many years before not to give the younger Witch enough clues to let her know that the student had been her. The Headmistress of Hogwarts had suppressed a smirk when a flash of jealousy appeared in Hermione's eyes, telling Minerva that perhaps she was not the only one feeling something more than friendship. Alas, as she'd already reminded herself several times, it was a moot point. Even if Hermione did return her feelings, the woman was married. Nothing could happen. Both of them had far too much integrity to allow for an affair, though Minerva would not put it past either of them to slip up and confess the feelings, or even kiss. But beyond that, no.

The idea of kissing Hermione sent shivers down Minerva's spine. It scared her how much she wanted it. Even if it was only once, Minerva knew that she would never regret it. Perhaps, she mused, that in itself was good enough reason not to allow even one kiss to occur, because if she could tell herself she would not regret kissing Hermione, could she really be so confident in her integrity to truly believe it would not lead to more? If that were the case, she'd be relying totally on Hermione's integrity to stop them from doing something they _would_ regret, and the control freak inside the older Witch did not like the idea of relying totally on anybody for anything, especially matters of the heart.

"You're Minerva McGonagall, right?" a voice said from behind her.

Minerva turned to face a man, and for a moment, she thought she was looking at a ghost. He looked a good deal like Remus Lupin, a man she'd called a dear friend, before he died at the end of the war. "Yes?" she replied, not knowing what else to say to the man with a French accent.

"My name is Piere Lupin," the man said, holding out his hand. "It is my understanding that you knew my elder brother, Remus."

Well that explained that, Minerva thought. "I didn't know Remus had any siblings," she replied, shaking his hand with a smile. "This is quite a surprise."

Piere smiled. "We were half-brothers, through our father, and had only met a few times. I only learned of his death about a year ago - it is in honor of his memory that I am competing."

Minerva nodded, understanding. "Teddy had much the same thought. He's worked quite hard to live up to Remus' memory."

"Teddy?" Piere asked, confusion in his voice.

"Teddy." Minerva said again, confused as to why Piere did not know who Teddy was. "Remus' son. Your nephew, as it were."

Piere cursed in French, saying something that Minerva could not understand litteraly, but took it to be an exclamation of surprise and delight by his tone. "I had no idea!" he finished in English.

"I've gathered," Minerva smiled. "I would be happy to introduce you, if you'd like."

"Of course! Of course! Merci!" Piere replied, clapping like a child.

Minerva observed the man carefully, and realized that he must have been only a boy himself when Remus died. Older than Hermione, but not by too much. What a wonderous thing it must be to, all these years later, discover a living link to the brother her hardly knew. As Headmistress, Minerva had watched Teddy grow from a babe to a man, and because Harry Potter was his godfather, as well as a member of her staff, she had been kept more apprised of Teddy's life after Hogwarts than she had of most other students. She was quite certain that the young man would be thrilled to discover an uncle, especially as that uncle was through his father. Teddy had quite a few relatives on his mother's side who had been a part of his life, but none whatsoever from his father's. Most of the people who'd even known his father well - the Marauders, for example - had all been dead before he was even born. The exception to that story was Peter Pettigrew of course, who was still rotting in Azkaban for his role of a Death Eater, and as the man who brought Voldemort down on James and Lily Potter.

"Well, let's go then, shall we?" Minerva replied, ushering the Frenchman towards where she had last seen Harry. Harry would know where Teddy was.

* * *

Hermione would never admit it, but she was spying: spying on her daughter Rose and the American man the girl had taken such a liking to. She'd already inquired at the American Ministry as to his background, and was pleased to find that James Roland, of Tucson, Arizona, was everything he appeared to be. Humble. Charming. Handsome. Intelligent. Honest. Talented.

And well on the way to stealing her daughter's heart, Hermione mused.

"Hermione?"

The woman squeaked. "Minerva!"

"Sorry to startle you, but I was wondering if you'd seen Teddy. I asked Harry, and he didn't know," Minerva replied. "What _are _you doing?" she added.

"Oh, I'm watching Rose and this James Roland guy," she replied, pointing to the pair across the room at the bar, laughing over coffee. Hermione wondered if the coffee was spiked with something. "They seem quite taken with each other."

"I assume you've already inquired about him at the American Ministry?" Minerva said coyly.

Hermione blushed, though she really wasn't surprised at how well Minerva knew her. "Well, I only...I mean...fine. Yes, I did."

Minerva sighed, saying nothing.

"Am I being too over protective?" Hermione asked quietly. She didn't want to be overbearing. After all, Rose was an adult now. She was just worried, that was all.

"No," Minerva replied. "I admit, had you not already done so I would have suggested that you did. Perhaps it is merely ingrained suspicion brought on by having been raised during a war. We can't be faulted for that."

Hermione nodded, agreeing fully, and then remembered that Minerva had asked her a question. "You were asking after Teddy?"

"Yes," Minerva said, smile forming on her lips. "It seems that the third French duelist is a younger half-brother of Remus'. The man didn't even know he had a nephew, and had only found out about his brother's death a year ago."

"Oh my god," Hermione said, hands covering her mouth. "That's...wonderful. He seems nice? Remus' brother, I mean?"

"He does," Minerva replied. "His name is Piere Lupin. He's quite excited about meeting Teddy, which is why I'm trying to find the boy. Any idea where he is?"

"He's up first for this morning's duels," Hermione replied. "They are due to start shortly, I would guess he's down there getting warmed up. The reunion may have to wait till later this afternoon."

Minerva nodded. "Well then, I guess I'll go find a seat with Piere, and get a good view."

"Right," Hermione said, feeling slightly awkward at the notion of Minerva sitting with someone besides her. "I'll see you later then, if you're going to sit with him."

Minerva crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "My arse isn't that big, Hermione Granger. There is plenty of room on our usual bench. I was hoping to have you by my side, but if you'd rather not..."

Hermione blushed. "I'm sorry, you're right, I don't know what I was thinking."

"Come." Minerva motioned for her to follow, and Hermione took once last glance at Rose and James, who seemed to be drowning the last of their coffee and preparing to head down as well.

"That's the second time you've called me by my maiden name in as many days," Hermione observed.

Minerva took a moment to consider her reply before speaking. "I remember so fondly the days when you still were Hermione Granger. We stopped getting together for lunches and what-not once you became Hermione Weasley. I never understood why, though I'll admit to a bit of bitterness because of it. I so enjoy your company, and I can't help but wish things were different."

"Different how?" Hermione asked, feeling her breathing hitch. She was no expert in reading minds, but Minerva seemed to be on the brink of telling her something...something that Hermione could already tell she really shouldn't know.

Minerva did not pause in her step as they passed by where Piere had been apparently waiting. She merely waved for him to join the two women, before answering Hermione. "Ask me another time, my dear," she said softly. "Now is not the time."

That was not what Hermione wanted to hear. "Minerva, don't leave me hanging like that!" she hissed, as Piere got closer to catching up to them.

Minerva stopped, put her hand tenderly on Hermione's hip, and leaned in to whisper in the younger woman's ear. "The girl was _you_."

As quickly as Minerva had grabbed her, she let go, and quickly engaged in conversation with Piere Lupin, who had by now reached them. Minerva walked on ahead with the man, acting as if they had not been heading down to the dueling hall together. Piere seemed none the wiser as Hermione stood there, body tingling over Minerva's brief touch, and mind digesting what the older woman had just said.

_"The girl..."_

The girl? Hermione thought. What girl? The younger Witch thought back on the conversations she'd had with Minerva over the last few days, and recalled only one conversation in which a nameless girl was mentioned. It was the female student that Minerva had once loved. Who found someone else and moved on with her life, leaving the older woman to nurse a broken heart alone. _What a total bitch,_ Hermione thought.

_"...was _you_."_

Like a train derailing and crashing into some Highlands ravine, Hermione collapsed on the floor where she stood, legs buckling and limp arms weakly breaking her fall. "Oh my god."

Hermione felt reality sink in; the gravity of what Minerva had just said hitting hard. Minerva had once fallen in love with _her_. She, Hermione, had never known, never suspected, and in her ignorance, she'd left Minerva behind as if she was nothing more than a former teacher.

_"The girl was _you_."_

No wonder Minerva was bitter regarding Hermione's marriage to Ron. Perhaps, if it was a happy marriage, Minerva might have been happy for her, but knowing the older woman like she did, she was well aware that it hurt Minerva to see someone she cared for _that much_ in a loveless marriage. When things might have been different...

The _what if's_ that Hermione had been thinking of the night before echoed in her mind, no longer seeming quite so far-fetched. Tears cascaded down the woman's cheeks as the might-have-been's she had considered yesterday turned into regrets, and in their place a set of what-could-be's began to form.

What would happen if Minerva knew that the feelings were mutual?

What would happen if tonight, or tomorrow, or any day in the future, something happened between them?

What would happen if Hermione stopped living a lie with Ron, and left her farse of a marriage?

What would happen if she and Minerva did get together, now, after so many wasted years?

What would happen if Hermione let herself fall in love?

* * *

**Please review! I really out a lot of thought into how quickly things begin to evolve between Minerva and Hermione, and I hope you guys don't think I'm moving things too fast. The tempo of a plot line has always been a bit of a struggle for me. I'm never certain if I'm giving too much, too soon.**


	6. Chapter 6

**I've actually been to New York City, and walked around it...all of it...long story involving my cousin, the week of Fourth of July, and a lot of achlohol...point being that what I describe is all actually there. If you have time to kill, you can google "The Museum of Natural History" on google maps and follow the route that I describe them taking...in the chapter you haven't read yet...yea, I'll let you get on with that. Cheers! **

* * *

Minerva had not looked back after she'd more or less told Hermione how she felt. She'd walked straight forward, chatting with Piere about Teddy and what kind of young man he was. She _couldn't_ look back. She'd be honest when she said to Hermione that now was not the time, but when Hermione had insisted, she'd lost her self control and said it. _The girl was you._

By the time Minerva had seen Hermione again, it was late that evening, and Hermione was already in bed. The dueling for Friday had lasted until quite late, and during the short breaks in between the three duels for meals, Hermione had been no where to be found. Teddy had gone against Kaylee Bryson, and after three grueling hours, had finally beaten her. Lunch followed, at which point Teddy's new found uncle, Piere, had dueled Gregor Nekavich. That duel had lasted nearly four hours, Piere holding out against Nekavich vailiently until the Bulgarian man had pulled out a few tricks that were borderline dark arts, and won. Rose Weasley had gone against Penny Baginski for the final match of the day, after dinner, and again the duel lasted hours. It was nearly ten in the evening before Rose finally disarmed the Polish Auror, winning Minerva about twenty Galleons in bets. In her victory, Rose had not seemed to notice her mother's absence. Hermione had never made it down to the dueling hall that day.

As much as Minerva had wished she could just claim the other bed on Friday night, not wanting to wake up next to Hermione after their unfinished conversation, she knew Rose and Danielle would be back at some point and need to sleep. Or at least, she thought she knew.

Saturday morning came and Minerva woke, next to Hermione. The first thing she noticed was that the other bed had never been unmade. Neither Rose nor Danielle seemed to have returned the night before. The second thing she noticed was that Hermione was already awake, looking at her with evident interest as the older woman rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and grabbed her glasses off the nightstand.

"Good morning," Hermione said quietly, gaze never leaving Minerva's face.

_Well this is bloody great. I could have slept in the other bed afterall,_ Minerva thought to herself. "Morning," she replied awkwardly. "I didn't see you at the duels yesterday."

"I didn't go," Hermione acknowledged. "I had a lot on my mind."

"Yes," Minerva replied slowly. She was not awake enough to start _this_ conversation. She punted with the first alternative topic that came to mind. "Did you hear that Rose won her match?"

Hermione smiled. "I did. I'm quite proud of her. She send me an Owl as soon as it was over and she realized I wasn't there, though I think the Owl was more to tell me that she and James were taking off for the weekend, and not to expect her back."

"Danielle did not return last night either." Minerva stated the obvious, hoping that this punt would not lead right back to romantic entanglements as the previous one had.

"I ran into her yesterday afternoon, and she mentioned that she would be headed home after Rose's duel," Hermione informed Minerva. "She had no real reason to remain. Many of the others who have been eliminated have also gone home."

"You knew neither of the girls would be back and you didn't think to leave me a note?" Minerva sputtered. "I could have slept in the other bed, you know!"

"I didn't want you to," Hermione whispered, tenderly reaching out and brushing a lock of Minerva's hair away from her eyes.

Minerva recoiled, and promptly got out of bed and wrapped a robe around her nightgown. "Do you have any idea how difficult you are?" she snapped.

"Don't be snappy with me, McGonagall. I'm not the one who turned the other's world upside down yesterday," she replied crisply. "I'm being difficult? What about you, confessing that you loved me once? Making me feel worse about my already pathetic love life, now being aware that it might have been different? And knowing that it's too late? Who's really the difficult one, Minerva?"

Minerva shook her head in disbelief. Didn't Hermione get it? Did she not see what was happening between them? That the love was not just a thing of the past? Who the bloody hell did she think she was, anyway, talking to her as if she was the problem? "Mrs. Weasley," she said in a quiet, cold tone. "If it was a matter of fleeting feeling of the past, then you are quite correct, I would be the one causing unnecessary drama. However, as feelings like _that_ do not just go away. Perhaps it was best that you pushed me away after you and Ronald married, because the last week, being here with you, has been virtual torture."

Hermione started at her, processing what she'd said. Her expression went from confused, to surprised, to curious, and then finally a smile started to play on her lips. "So you mean to say...that you still...?"

"For crying out loud Hermione!" Minerva groaned. Was the Witch bound and determined to drive her insane? "YES!"

"Minerva..."

"You are married," Minerva said miserably before Hermione could get another word out. "I am already behaving very inappropriately."

"I know," the younger Witch replied.

"I should not have said anything."

"No, you shouldn't have," Hermione agreed. "But you did."

"And now what?" Minerva wanted to know.

Hermione shrugged as she sat down on the edge of the bed. "I don't know."

"We could just not talk about it," Minerva suggested weakly. "I so wish I hadn't said anything."

"If that's how you want it to be," Hermione replied quietly. "I will not push further."

Minerva did not want it to be that way, but she knew it must so she nodded in agreement. The pair sat in silence for a long five minutes, before Minerva suggested that they dress and go for a walk in the city. After all, it was not every day that either of them came to New York City. Life in America was so vastly different than life in London, and Hermione agreed that they should check out the sights.

The two dressed, and shared a mostly silent breakfast in their room before heading out the door. They had agreed to go about the day Muggle style, so both were dressed in appropriate attire and before they headed anywhere, Hermione found the nearest bank and withdrew some American Muggle currency. Minerva had long ago discovered the beauty of credit cards, and was quite surprised that Hermione did not have one.

"You're Muggle-born, for crying out loud," Minerva laughed. "How do you not have a credit card?"

"I just never got one," Hermione defended herself. "By the time I was out of school and needed to have money available in larger quantities, I had money rolling in from the Order of Merlin stipend, and Gringots converts our money into Muggle money easily enough. A line of credit for the Muggle world that I would have rarely used just seemed pointless."

"But you wear clothing most of the time," Minerva argued. "Surely it's a bother to have to go to Gringots every time you need to go shopping in Muggle London."

"It's really not," Hermione relpied. "I go in, Griphook always has tea with me while the other goblins take care of the transaction. Going to Gringots is like visiting an old friend; I just don't feel put out by having to go that extra step to get Muggle money. Besides, wasn't it a major pain in the arse to even _get_ a Muggle credit card, when you're a pureblood? How do you even make your payments?"

Minerva blushed preemptively, knowing that what she was about to say would get her laughed at. "I have a laptop. I got on the internet, applied for a credit card, and I make my payments on the internet as well."

Hermione tried to hold it back, Minerva could see it in her face. Nonetheless, the burst of laughter followed after about a ten second silence. "_You_ have a computer?"

"I really don't see why this is so funny," Minerva snapped. "_You_ have plenty of Muggle electronics. An iPod, a cell phone, and so on."

"It's just that I never pinned you for the type," Hermione admitted.

By this point, the pair had reached a subway tunnel, and realized that they had not decided where to go first. The pair discussed several options, before agreeing to go to the Museum of Natural History, which had a subway station in the basement of the building, meaning that there was no way they could get lost. It would be a good test of their ability to get from point A to point B without ending up somewhere in New Jersey. A Muggle woman who had been apparently listening to their exchange, informed them that one could not get to New Jersey via the subway. Minerva kindly thanked the woman for the information while Hermione purchased two day passes for them. The woman proceeded to inform them that day passes were perfect for strangers to the city, so that if they did get lost, it would not cost them an arm and a leg in single ride passes to get back to where they needed to be. Hermione had nearly begun to explain that worst case, they could always Apparate back to their hotel, before Minerva elbowed her and the younger Witch was reminded that she was in fact talking to a Muggle.

The two got to the Museum easily enough, which they proceeded to spend the rest of the morning touring. They got subs to go at a little place called "Andy's Deli", and then followed eighty-first street into Central Park. Away from the large crowds, Minerva cast a localized ward to ensure their privacy, and the two began discussing less Muggle topics, such as Transfiguration, the Art of Dueling, and Spell Development. They roamed Central Park for hours, checking out the sights as they went.

They made their way down West Drive, and then looped around the lake via Terrance Drive, before heading up East Drive via detour to Bethesda Fountain and the Loeb Boathouse. They saw Cleopatra's Needle, at which point they exited the Park for a time, spending an hour and a half doing a quick tour of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Art was not a topic of major interest to either of them, though both intellects felt that it would be a shame to not at least stop by. Who knew when the next time they'd happen to be walking by it would be, if such an event ever occurred again.

After that stop, they followed a path that paralleled eighty-sixth in order to reconnect with West Drive, and then took it around the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir. They had only made it to ninetieth before they started to get hungry for dinner. The pair agreed that it would be getting dark soon enough, so they best find somewhere to eat and then head back to the hotel. They found a nice Italian place on Columbus Avenue to have dinner, which after sharing a bottle of wine and beginning the walk to the nearest subway station, neither could remember the name of.

"I really enjoyed today," Hermione said, once the pair had safely stumbled into their hotel room, both very proud of the fact that they had not once resorted to magic to get themselves back.

"As did I," Minerva agreed with a slight slur. "Though I want to know what was in that wine...because I am Scottish... and I should not be this drunk after a single bottle."

Hermione chuckled. "Good wine will do that to you, especially if you are not used to it. When was the last time you had wine?"

"A long time," Minerva admitted, plopping on the bed that was normally taken by Rose and Danielle. "I might puke when I wake up, so I'm going to sleep over here."

In reality, Minerva was grateful for an excuse not to sleep in the same bed as Hermione tonight, however flimsy that excuse may be. Despite the fact that they had not discussed _that_ since first thing that morning, Minerva was in fact, drunk, and did not trust herself to not do anything stupid. Hermione did not seem taken aback by Minerva's claim of the second bed, so Minerva drew back the covers, lazily transfigured her clothing into something comfortable enough to sleep in, and before the lights were even dimmed, she passed out.

* * *

**Please review! Teaser for next chapter: Another day of no dueling, and Hermione and Minerva wake up in the same bed, despite the fact that Minerva attempted to sleep alone. :D**


	7. Chapter 7

**Confession of the day: By chapter 7 of a story, I'm usually hitting the climax, and bringing the story to a close. Most of my stories are only about 10 chapters. The fact that I'm on chapter 7 of 30 for this story kinda terrifies me. That said, thank you all for your encouragement as I push myself further as a writer. And here you go, Chapter 7. :)**

* * *

Hermione had stayed awake for hours, just watching Minerva, who had passed out cold, from across the room. Everything inside of her screamed to be near the older woman, and at about two in the morning, she'd given in and gone over to the other bed. She'd intended on asking Minerva if it was alright that she join her, but the moment she'd said the older woman's name, Minerva had just scooted over on her own accord, giving Hermione the room she needed to crawl in. The brunette took that as a go-ahead, and scooted in close to the Scottish Witch.

Morning yielded a less warm welcome. The first thing Hermione heard, before she'd even opened her eyes, was Minerva muttering something to herself about having been certain she'd gone to bed alone.

"I joined you later," Hermione said quietly, not opening her eyes just yet. "You didn't seem to mind."

"I was sleeping," Minerva snapped. "How on earth does one object when they are unconscious?"

Hermione's eyes fluttered open, and upon seeing the expression on Minerva's face - one very much like the 'Professor McGonagall' face she'd seen during her Hogwarts years - she chuckled. "Why so serious?"

"Why so nonchalant?" Minerva countered. "Hermione, I told you yesterday - "

"Yes you did," Hermione replied, adjusting her position to roll over and face the older woman. "But you never asked how I felt about it."

"It's a pointless conversation to have," Minerva groaned. "Even in the highly unlikely scenario that you did fancy me ..."

"I do," Hermione whispered.

"...you are still married," Minerva rattled on. Then she paused. "You do, what?"

"Fancy you," the younger women replied, meeting the elder's gaze. "I've felt more alive in the last week than I have in the last decade. I feel more love when you look at me than I have in all the touches Ron has given me over the entirety of our marriage."

"Don't say that," Minerva whimpered.

"I could fall in love with you so easily," Hermione admitted, both to herself and to Minerva. Yesterday, just walking about the city with Minerva, had been so fulfilling. Just talking like that, about this and that, was something she had never been able to do with Ron.

"You can't mean that," Minerva insisted, a tear falling down her cheek.

Hermione lifted her hand to brush the tear away. "I wish I didn't," she said. "But I do."

Minerva pulled away, looking ashamed. "We can't do this." *

Hermione did not reach out to touch Minerva again. "We're not doing anything wrong."

Minerva met her gaze again, pain filling her eyes. "We can't do this," she repeated.

Hermione nodded, and got up out of the bed without another word. She dressed in silence, not daring to look at Minerva as she stripped down to her underwear and then pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Hermione had been about to walk out the door when Minerva spoke again.

"One or both of us is most likely going to be eliminated in the next few days," she said. "I think it would be best if we did not continue to see each other socially once we part ways."

Hermione bit back the tears. "You're probably right," she said quietly. "Rose will be here in the room with us at night until that happens, so nothing...inappropriate will happen."

"That's good," Minerva replied.

Hermione hated that. She hated the idea that she didn't trust her self control enough to not be relying on her barley of age daughter to make sure she didn't cheat on her husband, especially when Rose had no idea what was going on. It occurred to her that perhaps she ought to share what had happened this weekend with her daughter, so Rose was aware and could help her, but the idea of confessing to her daughter that she was tempted to cheat on the girl's father with a woman old enough to be her grandmother was less than appealing.

What the hell was she thinking, anyway? She was forty-five years old for crying out loud! Was this some sort of midlife crisis? To fall for Minerva, a woman who was pushing ninety? Granted, with the whole "magical folk age differently" concept that she'd long ago accepted, that type of age gap was not unheard of. Wizards and Witches might age normally until they reached maturity, but while midlife for a muggle was thirty-five to sixty, the wizarding world considered you to be middle aged until you were pushing one hundred and ten or so. You weren't considered old until you were past one hundred and fifty. Hermione and Minerva both fell into the category of middle aged Witches, even if by muggle standards, Minerva was getting quite old.

Hermione shook her head, realizing she'd just been standing by the door for a full minute at least. She didn't look back at Minerva before walking out of the room, much like Minerva had not met her gaze on Friday after confessing that Hermione and the student she'd fallen in love with were one in the same.

* * *

Minerva and Hermione had managed to avoid one another for the better part of Sunday. The older Witch had gone and found out that for round two, she herself was slotted to duel on Monday, and Hermione was set for Wednesday. The Headmistress of Hogwarts knew that she could not just throw the match - her reputation would be ruined if it got out that she had, not to mention the legal problems she'd have, as it was in the Duel-Off rules that one did not purposely loose. On the other hand, the rules didn't state that she had to give one hundred percent - if she only gave seventy-five percent, her opponent, Teddy Lupin in this case, would have a more than fair chance of defeating her. The young man was good enough for that.

If Teddy lost to her, it would be down to Hermione's duel on Wednesday, with Seamus Finnigan. Hermione knew the rules just as Minerva did, and her career was hinged on her reputation as an honest dueler. Hermione would likely do exactly what Minerva was planning, and just not give her full dedication to the round.

It was about five in the evening when Hermione barged back into the room, where Minerva had been reading the latest Transfiguration Journal, in an obvious panic.

"What is it?" Minerva asked, concerned despite herself. "What's wrong."

"Rose eloped," Hermione said stiffly.

"Eloped?" Minerva blinked. How utterly Weasley of the girl. Hermione would never have just run off and got married.

"Yes," Hermione confirmed. "James Roland is my new son-in-law."

"Are you not happy with this?" Minerva asked, unsure of why the younger woman was so upset. "I thought you liked him."

"I like him just fine. And I'm happy for them," Hermione replied crisply. "It's only thier timing that I dislike. As this means that Rose will no longer be sharing a room with the two of _us_."

"Oh," Minerva said mutely, suddenly understanding the gravity of the situation. So much for that supervision they were going to have. "Perhaps I can find another room to move to?" she suggested.

"I already checked for availability," Hermione sighed. "Another large group of people check in tomorrow morning for some computer convention. Rose and James got the last available room - one of the honeymoon suites - which one can only get if you prove you've only just gotten married, so unless you go get hitched we're stuck in this room together. Moving to another hotel would make it too obvious that there was something going on..."

"Yes, I agree on that point," Minerva hastily interjected. "That's the last thing we need. And who do you propose I run off any marry?" she half joked.

Hermione apparently did not find this funny. "You seemed to get on well with Piere Lupin. Perhaps you could go ask him," she snapped.

"Oh I was just kidding!" Minerva rolled her eyes and tossed her magazine on the table. "We will just have to deal with it. There are two beds in this room, and providing that you can manage to stay in your own bed, nothing will happen."

"So says the Witch who designed the sliding stair that keeps boys out of the Gryffindor girls dorm!" Hermione laughed bitterly. "You and I both know that as long as we're in a room together, alone, there is a chance..."

"Well we'll just have to hold it together for a few days, Hemione!" Minerva snapped, getting irritated at the younger woman for making such a big deal out of this. "We are both adults here, not hormonal teenagers."

Hermione bit her lip, and then let out a slow breath. "Okay. Fine," she said. "Let's just go downstairs and act as if everything is normal. Rose asked that you join us for dinner. She seems to think that she can't be certain she made the right decision in marrying James until you give him the stamp of approval. Don't ask me why."

Minerva laughed at that. "It's not the first time. Harry actually asked for my seal of approval about marrying Ginny before he bothered to ask Arthur and Molly. Being Head of Gryffindor House for so many years, and now as Headmistress - students who have difficult relationships with their parents often turn to me for such things. Teaching at Hogwarts is like being a parent to hundreds of children, nine months out of the year."

"I didn't realize Rose felt she had a _difficult relationship_ with her parents," Hermione said crossly.

Minerva, forgetting herself for a moment, reached out and squeezed Hermione's hand. "Not with you, my dear. With her father. Rose wants the approval of two parents, not just one."

Hermione nodded, understanding. "Sorry I snapped. You're right."

Minerva sighed. "It's understandable. You're under a lot of stress at the moment."

"You think?" Hermione huffed with a small laugh. "Not that it matters."

"It matters to me, no matter what happens," the older Witch replied kindly. "Now, shall we go down to dinner?"

* * *

Hermione sat at a table for four - herself, Minerva, Rose, and James. The group had finished eating more than an hour ago, but were still sitting there sharing stories back and forth, getting to know each other. James seemed to be enjoying tales of Rose's childhood, both from Hermione and Minerva's perspective, and Hermione found herself enjoying the young man's perspective on a variety of things. He was quite intelligent, and very witty.

"I remember hearing about Hogwarts when I was ten years old," James was saying. "I asked my parents if I could go there, and they said no, that there was a perfectly good Wizarding School, if you can call Saint Merlin's a Wizarding school, here in the States."

"What's wrong with Saint Merlin's?" Hermione asked. "I've heard nothing but good things about it."

"Well, for starters, it's not purely a Wizarding school. Anyone looking for an _alternative education_ for their kids can enroll there, and there are just a few extra classes geared toward Wizarding students, which of course we can't tell our muggle friends about. They just think we're in these super advanced classes that would make thier head's spin," James explained. "I can appreciate aspects of it, like how we don't deal with all the pureblood nonsense you guys do, but I really enjoy being able to be open about my life around people I see every day. A lot of my friends from school are dating Muggles, and they don't ever plan on sharing the fact that they are Wizards with these girls. I couldn't stand being in love with someone and not sharing that part of my life with them."

"That makes sense," Minerva agreed. "However, the American way of doing things has prevented civil war from breaking out. I realize that this was before you were even born, but by the time Hermione was your age, she was a seasoned war veteran - "

"I wasn't all that," Hermione objected. "I just did my part."

"In defeating the greatest source of evil to ever walk the earth?" Rose laughed. "Oh mum, give yourself some credit. Uncle Harry tells me all about the things you did to help him beat Voldemort."

"Uncle Harry?" James asked. "As in Harry Potter?"

"You married my daughter without looking at her family tree first?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

"I was overcome with passion," James said solemnly, though his eyes were twinkling. "So no, I did not look at the family tree."

Rose sighed. "Yes, Harry Potter is my uncle, by marriage. My dad's sister is his wife."

"I see," James replied, obviously racking his brain and trying to keep what he knew of Rose's family in order."So you're related to everyone in the famed 'Golden Trio'."

"Oh I hate that title!" Hermione groaned. "Whoever the bloody hell came up with that better never cross my path."

"I think it was Severus who said it first, actually," Minerva informed the group.

"Snape?" Hermione gasped. "You've got to be kidding me. He hated us!"

"I'm pretty sure he meant it as a condescending remark," Minerva shrugged. "You remember how he was."

"This is the guy Al is named after, right?" Rose asked.

"Yes," Hermione confirmed.

"Al...Albus...cousin?" James asked slowly, checking his memory.

"Yes. The one with the older brother whose name is James," Rose confirmed. "And the older adopted brother named Teddy who is part werewolf."

_Teddy._ Hermione thought with a groan. Oh, that poor boy was in for a shock when he found out Rose and James eloped. For as long as Hermione could remember, Teddy had obviously fancied Rose. At least, any time past Rose's third year, after he'd broken things off with Victore. Any hope he had of catching Rose's attention was gone now. Hermione just hoped he didn't find out till after the duels tomorrow. He'd need to be at his best to stand a chance against Minerva.

And then, it all came back to her. Love, family, heartbreak, Minerva...and it was all Hermione could do to keep her chin held high as the conversation moved forward, when inside, her soul was crying out to touch even a fraction of the happiness that her daughter was obviously feeling for James; crying out for Minerva.

* * *

**Please review!**

*** I kind of stole that scene from the movie "Loving Annabelle". If you have never seen it, you really should. It's a _Wolf Films_ production about a teacher/student romance, and yes, they are both female. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Here is a long awaited update for Dueling! It's a bit on the short side, but it's something. Hope you guys enjoy!**

* * *

Minerva woke Monday morning, rolled over and breathed a sigh of relief to see that Hermione was still sleeping – in the other bed. _She still does understand reason, at least._ Minerva thought to herself. She let out a catlike yawn and stretched, and started to mentally go over the spells she planned to use in her Duel against Teddy Lupin in a few hours. Minerva mused that despite the fact that she intended to loose this Duel to she could get her lovesick arse back to Hogwarts, that it might prove move of a challenge for her to allow Teddy to beat her without looking like she wasn't trying to win than it might have been to actually endeavor to beat him.

Her movements caused Hermione to stir. "Good morning," the younger Witch groggily said. "You going over spells?"

"Indeed," Minerva replied. "It will be an interesting exercise for me to Duel with the purpose of not winning, without looking like I'm throwing the match.

"I don't think Teddy will be on his game today," Hermione sleepily said. "Might end up being very difficult to pull off."

"Why would Teddy not be at his best?" Minerva inquired.

"Because Rose is unlikely to refrain from announcing her new marriage to anyone who will listen, and Teddy has fancied her for years. He told me once that he was waiting till after she graduated Hogwarts to pursue her – now it's too late, and heartbreak does nothing good for a person's ability to focus."

Minerva sighed, as Hermione comment regarding Teddy had reminded her once more of the heartbreak she was enduring herself. "Well, looks like Teddy and I are in the same boat then," she muttered.

Hermione sat up. "I thought we decided not to talk about that."

"You're right," Minerva agreed, internally smacking herself to saying what she had. "Sorry."

Hermione nodded, and got up and went into the bathroom without another word. Minerva continued to go over spells in her head until Hermione finished getting ready, and then after her own shower, the two headed down to breakfast, neither saying another word.

* * *

Hermione had been right about Teddy being off his game. The young man looked like he'd had no sleep at all, on top of looking dreadfully hung over. Evidently, he'd not bothered getting a hangover potion this morning, and in the end, Minerva had beat him in only half hour, much to the disappointment of the crowd, and Hermione's own frustration. She and Minerva would have to deal with each other for at least two more days.

"Teddy, are you alright?" Hermione asked, approaching him after the match.

"I've been better," he muttered. "McGonagall wasn't even trying."

"Teddy, I'm sorry…Rose…"

The young man flopped down on the bench and sighed. "Yea. I'm kind of in shock. I always figured…never mind, it doesn't matter anymore. Some other bloke beat me to it."

"He seems like a good man," Hermione said gently. "He won't hurt her."

"I'm sure he won't," Teddy agreed. "But I still want to rip his throat out. I can't find a single part of me that it happy for them. I've never felt the wolf this…strongly."

"You'll keep under control though, right?" Hermione inquired seriously. The last thing she needed right now was for Teddy to kill James in a moment of crazed passion.

"Yea Hermione, of course I will," Teddy replied sincerely. "As shitting as I feel about her picking him, I would feel worse if she hated me for taking him away from her. If Rose is happy with Roland, then I'll just stay away from now on."

Hermione longed to tell Teddy that she understood what he was feeling right now, at least somewhat, but she knew that the only way this thing with Minerva was going to go away was if there was no one to ever remind her of what kind of love she could have had.

On the other hand, Hermione found herself wondering if she could live with herself, letting Minerva walk away. Unlike Teddy, Hermione did have some measure of control in her current situation. She _could_, hypothetically, ask Ron for a divorce. The feelings in her situation were mutual, unlike the situation with Teddy and Rose. She didn't have to fear rejection form Minerva, as Teddy feared from Rose. All she had to fear was the public fallout, if she and Minerva did enter into a relationship and were open about it.

Gods, Rita Skeeter would have a heyday with this one. Hermione began to wonder what was really holding her back. Her kids were just about grown. Hugo only had one year left of Hogwarts, and Rose had graduated. She and Ron didn't love one another, at least not the way they should. Harry would accept it without much problem, so long as the divorce was amicable. Harry may even be open minded about her and Minerva having a relationship, though Hermione still didn't relish the notion of actually telling him. Most of her other friends had been telling her she should leave Ron for years.

And in that moment, Hermione could not come up with a reason for why she had never listened.

* * *

Minerva, after winning her match against Teddy Lupin, miserably made a quick exit out of the dueling hall and to the hotel bar without even looking at Hermione. The younger Witch had said a few days ago that sometimes she liked to get sloshed just for the hell of it, but right now Minerva wanted to get sloshed for one of the normal reasons – to forget her problems. As she downed a shot of muggle vodka, she looked at the clock on the wall and groaned. "Not even ten in the bloody morning."

"Min?" a familiar voice said. "What the hell are you drinking for?"

Minerva turned to see not one brother, but both of them. Gods, she'd forgotten they'd both stayed despite being eliminated in round one. "I do not want to talk about it," she said, tapping her glass on the bar to get the barman's attention. "Another, please," she said.

"Minerva," Robert said. "Now I know something's wrong. What's going on?"

"Rob, let her drink a few first," Malcolm suggested as Minerva emptied her second shot of vodka. "She always has a loose tongue after three or four shots."

"Leave…me…alone," Minerva said slowly, starting to feel the buzz as she downed shots three, four, and five between words.

"Five is plenty," Robert said, grabbing his younger sister and lifting her easily off the stool she'd been occupying. "Mal, pay the guy and then let's take her upstairs. Your room or ours, Min?"

"Not mine!" the now stumbling Witch yelped. "Don't know when Her-mi-o-ne will be back."

Malcolm laughed. "I haven't seen you this sloshed in decades!"

"You weren't even this drunk the night after Albus died," Robert muttered, worry evident in his tone. "Damn Min, what have you done?"

"I told her." Minerva slurred, as she watched with intense interest as Malcolm unlocked he and Robert's hotel room.

Malcolm held open the door as Robert ushered an unsteady Minerva though the frame and into the room. He directed her to one of the beds and helped her sit. "What happened sis?" Malcolm asked after locking the door. "You told her what? Who's her?"

Robert's eye's got noticeably wide when Minerva replied. "Hermione," she muttered. She didn't need to say more – sloshed as she was she knew Robert would get the whole picture just by telling him who was the cause of her distress.

"Oh, Min," Robert said, letting out of sigh. How long have you…?"

"More years than is really appropriate to admit," she said after a pause.

"Damn."

"Care to let me in on the loop?" Malcolm interjected.

"Our sister is in love with Hermione Weasley." Robert explained.

"Oh," Malcolm said in an obviously surprised tone. "Wow. So what happened? You told her how you feel and she rejected you?"

"Not exactly…" Minerva replied miserably.

"She feels the same?" Robert asked, dread lacing his tone.

"It seems so."

Malcolm whistled. "Damn sis, you are a right mess. Isn't she married?"

"Yes, to one of the biggest buffoons to ever walk the halls of Hogwarts," Minerva answered sharply. "And it's not even a happy marriage."

"That's not really your place to judge, Minerva," Robert said pointedly. "Just like it wasn't Albus' place to judge my and Arianna's betrothal."

"Must you bring that up all the time?" Minerva snapped. "Mr. and Mrs. Dumbledore were pureblood maniacs and Arianna didn't want to marry you anyhow. The marriage was arranged as a way to use Arianna for breeding stock, to extend the Dumbledore line. Albus felt his sister deserved better."

"I loved her," Robert hissed. "I never saw her that way and you know it. If Albus had kept the betrothal as it was, we might have been happy together and Arianna sure as hell would still be alive."

"Drop it you two," Malcolm interjected. "That's an old bone and I've heard quite enough of it. Rob you might have been a Snape for as good as you are at holding a grudge. We're here today for Minerva. Let the past go."

"Fine," Robert spat. "So let's get talking about how Minerva, the incorruptible McGonagall, wants to jump a married woman more than half her age. Honestly Min, what were you thinking?"

Minerva's head was pounding. Vodka did that to her – about fifteen minutes of pure bliss followed by a headache from hell. _Do not pass sleep, go directly to hangover._ "I wasn't thinking, obviously," she replied irritably.

Malcolm looked pensive. "Well if you fancy her and she fancies you, _and_ she doesn't like her husband anymore, why doesn't she get a divorce and run off with you?"

"How utterly childish," Robert scoffed. "There's more to consider than feelings, Mal. Hermione has two children to consider. Minerva has her career. Love is never that cut and dry."

"Oh give me a break," Malcolm said, waving off Roberts concerns. "Her kids are both about grown. I've been talking a bit to Rose this week, and Hermione's boy, Hugo, it starting his last year of Hogwarts this September. As for Minerva's career – isn't it about time you considered retirement anyhow, Min?"

Minerva shrugged. "I had not honestly considered retirement as something I was suited for, but if, and that is a big if, Hermione were to leave Ronald, I would not be opposed to it."

* * *

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Two chapters in one day! I'll admit that I've really been looking forward to writing this chapter, thus the rapid update. This is the point which the story really starts to pick up. I hope you guys enjoy it!**

* * *

Minerva had never returned to their room Monday night. Tuesday was here now, and Hermione was just finding herself a good seat to watch the match between Harry and her godson, Tanner Hagrid. "Aunt Hermione!" Tanner called, walking toward her. "Any last minute words of wisdom before Uncle Harry beats me to a pulp?"

Hermione considered is query for a moment before answering the seven foot tall man before her. "Harry's stunners are pretty strong, so don't be shocked if they push you around more than normal. His weakness is Transfiguration, so try to use that to your advantage."

Tanner's dark eyes twinkled. "Thanks."

Hermione was fairly certain that Harry was going to beat Tanner in the end regardless, but she preferred that he actually have to work for it. Harry had the advantage of being older, more experienced, and already aware of the weaknesses of having Giant blood. Hermione thought about Hagrid, who had really wanted to be here for his son today, but all agreed that despite the muggle comic convention going on, Hagrid would still be a security problem, so he'd wished his son luck and stayed home.

Hermione looked around and finally spotted Minerva, sitting on the other side of the room between her two brothers. She caught the elder, Robert's gaze and was surprised when he glared at her. She turned and caught Malcolm's gaze and he shrugged at her, a look of sympathy in his eyes. Minerva seemed oblivious to the exchange, though Hermione was fairly certain that she was simply pretending not to notice the younger witch.

"Standing for England, Harry Potter!" the announcer shouted. The crowd roared with applause. Even all these years later, the boy-who-lived-twice was still the subject of great fandom. "And standing for half-breeds, Tanner Hagrid! Let the match begin!"

Harry and Tanner each bowed and took ten steps away from each other, before turning with wands at the ready. "Duel!" the announcer shouted, and sparks began to fly.

Tanner got the first shot off, sending a stunner flying toward Harry, who easily blocked it with a lazy flick of his wrist. Harry returned the favor and sent his own stunner towards Tanner, who as usual did not block it, which resulted in him being shoved backwards. He did not lose his footing, but Hermione knew that he would have if she had not warned him about the strength of Harry's stunners. The young quarter-Giant stared at Harry with determination, and Hermione let out a giggle when Harry yelped in surprise as thousands of spiders began crawling out of the mat below his feet. Tanner must have transfigured the stuffing like Minerva had.

_Oh, Minerva,_ Hermione thought with a groan. Why did it always come back to her? Hermione thought about the looks Robert and Malcolm McGonagall had given her a few minutes before, and concluded that Minerva must have told them what was going on. Or at least, they must have guessed. A loud bang resounded in the room, causing Hermione to turn her attention back to the match, and she saw Harry flat on his arse. Tanner must have shot off something really powerful for it to make that loud of a sound against Harry's shield. Obviously the impact had send Harry flying. Another bang as Tanner shot off '_Reducto Magno_' told Hermione that, pleased with the result of the first time, Tanner had chosen to repeat the spell.

Harry was prepared this time, however, and rebounded on Tanner with obvious vigor. Hermione could tell that Harry's pride was wounded by the fall, and that from here on one, he would not cut his friend's son any slack. Tanner seemed to know this as well, as his stance immediately became more defensive, even before Harry's voice started booming through the hall. Her long-time friend had never been particularly good at silent spells.

"CORPUS PARVUS!"

Tanner's stature began to shrink until it was the size of about the standard fourth year. Despite being miniaturized, Tanner managed to block the next few spells Harry sent his way, and even managed a few more transfiguration spells that attempted to slow Harry down. Hermione found Tanner's use of _Portus Gladius _of particular interest, as Tanner animated some Devil's Snare and caused it to entrap Harry. Harry, however, was only momentarily stalled by this.

"LUMINOS MAXIMO!"Harry shouted to get the Devil's Snare to back off. "REDUCTO!"

Tanner had by now managed to put himself back to his proper size, but the effort in doing so took longer than it took Harry to untangle himself, and with a few final spells, Tanner was disarmed, leaving Harry the victor.

Hermione stood and clapped with the rest of the crowd. The match had taken nearly forty minutes. Hermione was proud of Tanner for his effort, and as soon as Harry's adoring masses began to dissipate, she went and told him so.

"Thanks Aunt Hermione," Tanner replied sincerely. "We both knew Harry was going to get me, but I am pretty happy with how long I lasted. I wish dad could have seen it."

"You should go send him an Owl and let him know how it went," Hermione suggested. "If I know your father, he's waiting anxiously by the window already. He knew you had a match this morning, right?"

"Yea," Tanner confirmed. "I'll go Owl him after I get a shower. Nothing like a good Duel to get a guy all sweaty and gross."

Hermione laughed. "Off with you then."

* * *

Minerva managed to avoid Hermione throughout the day. She'd ended up passing out in her brothers' room the night before, though first thing in the morning Malcolm had informed her that she could not do so again. Robert was well known as a bed hog, and while Malcolm had started out on the bed with Robert, he'd ended up camping on the floor after Robert nearly kicked him in the nuts mid way through the night.

"Hey, Minerva!" Harry Potter's voice said from behind her. "Do you have plans for dinner?"

Minerva turned and faced her Defense Professor. "Not that I am aware of," she replied.

"Good. You can join us then," Harry replied with a grin.

"Who is us?" Minerva wanted to know, already dreading the answer.

"Um, myself and Tanner, Teddy and his uncle, and Hermione," Harry replied.

Minerva pursed her lips, racking her brain to figure out some way to get out of dining with the group without giving Harry any clue to what was going on. She came up with nothing. "Very well," she replied at last. "What time and where?"

"Hermione mentioned some Italian place in the city that you two found on Saturday. She couldn't remember the name of the place, but seemed pretty certain she could find it again regardless," Harry stated. "I think we were planning on leaving in about half hour, giving time to find the place before we're all starving to death."

"So meet you in the lobby in half hour?" Minerva clarified.

"Yup," Harry said cheerfully. "Dress to impress!"

Minerva stared at her co-worker. "Why would I do that?"

Harry sighed. "All due respect Headmistress, but I've been hoping for a chance to get you on an outing like this for years. You've been alone for far too long. I know you haven't been with anyone in about ten years…"

"Harry, I was not aware you knew anything about my personal life," Minerva said crisply. She could not for the life of her recall ever telling him about any of her relationships. There had been a few over the years, the last somewhat serious one being…yes, Harry was right, ten years ago now.

"I know more about you than you'd think," Harry said with a twinkle in his eyes. "Her name was Lucy, correct? Your last girlfriend?"

"Harry Potter, I have no idea how you found out about Lucy, but I assure you, now is not the time for me to go hunting for a new relationship," Minerva snapped.

"It's been ten years, Minerva," Harry complained. "Find someone special. Retire. Live a life that consists of more than just duty. What was the last time you did that?"

"Not since long before you were born," Minerva admitted. "And retire? Are you after my job, Mr. Potter?"

Harry's eyes twinkled again. "Someday. For now, Filius' would do."

"Cheeky man," Minerva laughed. "I'll see you in half hour, Harry. I'll put something decent on, but I'm not dolling up just to satisfy your odd need for me to find a new relationship."

* * *

Hermione smirked in satisfaction. "There it is!" she said to the group, pointing to the Italian restaurant she and Minerva had gone to days before.

"So it is," she heard Minerva whisper.

Hermione sighed, and forced herself not to look at the older witch. If she hadn't known better, she'd think that Minerva was trying to drive her insane with the way she'd dressed this evening. The older witch was wearing a pair of loose black slacks and a long sleeved, green, scoop neck shirt which rested just low enough to make Hermione's imagination ignite.

The group went inside and were seated after a few minutes. The meal was delicious, and was followed by several glasses of wine per person. Minerva had tried to decline, but for some reason, Harry had insisted the older woman have some. Hermione had not declined, certain that Harry would do the same to her. If she just nursed the glass, she might make it through the evening mostly sober.

By eight, Teddy and his uncle had excused themselves and headed back to the hotel. They were planning to go to France, back to Pierre's house, and spend some time catching up on each other's lives. Half hour later, Tanner took his leave, claiming to have an early morning Portkey back to England. Hermione, Harry, and Minerva chatted quietly till nine when the restaurant closed, and then walked back to the hotel together. Harry took his leave once they reached the lobby, and finally, Hermione and Minerva were alone.

"We should go get to bed," Minerva said after an awkward silence. "You have a match in the morning."

"Of course," Hermione replied. "Are you come up too, or are you sleeping elsewhere again?"

"I was in my brothers' room last night, passed out drunk," Minerva explained. "Malcolm made it clear this morning, however, that I was not allowed to stay there again, so yes, I'll be in our room tonight."

"With any luck, I'll lose tomorrow and go home," Hermione replied tiredly. "This should be the last night we have to…" her voice trailed off, obvious sadness in her tone. "Minerva, am I ever going to see you again, once we part ways this time?"

"In passing, maybe," Minerva replied quietly as the pair started walking toward their room. "Other than that…I don't know."

Neither said another word until they reached the room. Hermione couldn't even look at Minerva, and it was all she could do to hold back the tears. The idea of never seeing this woman again was killing her. As soon as the door to their room closed behind them, Hermione lost it.

She leaned against the nearest wall and slid to the floor. "I hate this," she croaked, trying desperately not to cry.

"Get up, Hermione," Minerva whispered. "If you can't pull yourself together, I'll find another hotel to go to."

Hermione stood quickly, anger flashing in her eyes. "I don't want you to go!" she shouted, shoving Minerva backward a step. "That's the bloody point!"

"Hermione!" Minerva shouted back. "I don't like this any more than you do. If you have an idea on what we can do to just magic this pain away, I'm all ears!"

Hermione would later wonder if what happened next was a result of the wine, or if it was just bound to happen after all that had transpired in the last week, but happen it did. Without any further thought, she rushed forward, grabbed Minerva's face, and pulled her into a kiss.

Minerva kissed her back without any hesitation. There was no stopping this, not now. Hermione felt her back being pressed into the wall she'd previously leaned on, but this time Minerva was pressed against her, hands roaming over Hermione's curves and tongue battling for dominance.

"Hermione," Minerva panted. "We shouldn't…"

"I don't care," Hermione muttered, blood pumping faster and faster as, despite vocalized objections, Minerva was still biting down on a sweet spot on her neck. "Oh gods," she moaned.

Before long, the pair had migrated to one of the beds, and after an hour or so of kissing, the two fell asleep fully clothed, but tangled around each other, as if they were holding on for dear life. Neither considered what consequences the morning would bring.

* * *

**PLEASE REVIEW! You know you want to!**


	10. Chapter 10

**So, as a result of me rereading my own story and getting to the end and saying to myself "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENS NEXT?!"...and then realizing that I had to WRITE what happens next...you guys get a Dueling update. Hope you enjoy. This is actuality pretty pivotal chapter.**

* * *

Hermione woke in Minerva's arms, deeply breathing in the old woman's scent and smiling. She knew that there would be consequences to face, but for right now, Hermione just wanted to live in the moment.

"Good morning," a familiar voice, not Minerva, said quietly.

Hermione opened her eyes and looked over to see her daughter sitting in one of the hotel room's longue chairs, sipping a cup of hot tea. "Rose?" she whispered.

Rose put her cup down on the table beside her chair and crossed her arms, face totally without expression. "So exactly how drunk did you two get last night?" she asked.

By now Minerva had begun to stir, rolling over to face the conversation which had woken her. "Rose?" she said groggily. "What are you doing here?"

Rose frowned. "Well I was just sneaking by to get some of my things, but walking in to you two in bed together, in a more than friendly embrace, I decided to sit tight till you woke up and hope for a hell of a good explanation."

"Rose," Hermione started. "This isn't…"

"If you're about to tell me that _this isn't what it looks like_, than please spare me the lie mum," Rose snapped. "What the hell is going on?"

"More than should be," Minerva replied, sitting up and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Obviously."

Hermione pursed her lips, trying to figure out the best way to explain herself. In her defense, she had been getting ready to say _this isn't going to be easy for you to understand_, but after Rose's interruption, she decided ona different approach. "The short version is that I am in love with Minerva," she said crisply.

"And I in love with your mother," Minerva added.

"Oh Merlin," Rose groaned. "You have got to be kidding me."

Hermione knew this would have been a far better conversation if she and Minerva had gotten a minute to discuss what they would say first, but that wasn't a minute they currently had the luxury of. "Rose, please believe when I say that what is happening between myself and Minerva has only just begun. Outside of things concerning you and your brother's educations, I had not spoken to Minerva in, god, more than ten years I should say."

"Thirteen years," Minerva mumbled. "And that was merely a chance meeting in London."

Hermione nodded, remembering the day in question. If she'd known then what she knew now…the last thirteen years might have been very different. "We only just reconnected here at the Duel-Off."

"And there was no history or anything?" Rose wanted to know. "Like you guys hadn't ever screwed around in a past?"

"Watch your mouth, Rose Weasley!" Hermione snapped. "We are not _screwing around._ Yes, something happened last night, but as you found us both clothed, I think you know already that things didn't go as far as sex."

Rose huffed. "Fine, but I'd bet anything that you want to," she accused.

Minerva rolled her eyes, and Hermione could sense the frustration rolling off the older witch. "Ten points to Gryffindor, Rose!" she snapped. "Hermione I am going to go shower so I have five minutes to gather my wits."

Hermione nodded, understanding. Rose was her daughter, not Minerva's. Despite recent conversations regarding the fact that Rose obviously saw her former Headmistress as a surrogate parent, this was Hermione's responsibility to deal with. "Go on," she said, squeezing Minerva's hand.

Minerva leaned in and kissed her forehead. "I'll be back shortly, dearest."

Rose suddenly became very interested in whatever was out the window. "Okay then…" she muttered.

Silence followed until Minerva was behind the bathroom door and the water for the shower had been turned on. "Alright," Hermione said after Rose made no sign of being the first to speak, "Go on and ask your questions. I will do my best to answer them honestly."

"Do you really love her?" Rose asked first.

"Yes," Hermione answered sadly. "Very, very much."

"What about dad?"

Hermione sighed. "I love your father because he is a dear friend to me, because of the history we have, and the children we raised together – you and Hugo, of course. But I have not been in love with your father in many years, nor he with me. We've stayed together for the sake of you kids, and public appearance. However, I have not seen your father for more than ten minutes at a time in probably two years at least. The last time we shared a bed right after Hugo recovered from Dragon Pox, during your fourth year."

"Oh," Rose said quietly, clearly having not been aware of just how little of a relationship existed between her parents. "So, are you going to leave dad?"

"I don't know, Rose," Hermione replied honestly. "There's a lot to consider prior to making that kind of decision. What happened last night between myself and Minerva, or rather what has been happening between us the last week, is certainly a factor to be thought about, but I cannot end my marriage based on those particular feelings alone. Marriage is not something to be taken lightly."

"So…" Rose said after a pause. "I guess I'll just keep all this to myself till you make up your mind."

"Please," Hermione agreed.

Rose stood. "Okay, I'm going to get out of here before McGonagall gets back. I'm sure you guys need to talk about things. Tell her I'm sorry I was rude, okay?"

Hermione nodded. "Of course, thanks sweetie."

Rose left the room, closing the door quietly behind her. Hermione suspected that she didn't want Minerva to hear her leaving. All of this had obviously made her uncomfortable, but she was proud that her daughter had showed enough maturity to know that this was something to be kept under wraps.

Hermione sighed. The gravity of the situation had been forced out into the open before she'd even opened her eyes, reminding Hermione that what had happened between she and Minerva the night prior had been wrong. She didn't regret it, and even if she did decide to discontinue the relationship that had started to blossom, she knew she never would look back on this week with anything other than positive thoughts. The question was, however, if she could live with herself only cherishing the memories, or if staying with Ron would be the catalyst to regretting the rest of her life.

The door to the bathroom opened and Minerva stepped out, fully dressed for the day ahead. "Rose left?" she asked.

Hermione nodded. "We talked a bit and she agreed to keep things to herself for the time being."

Minerva walked over and sat down on the bed next to her. "I know we don't have time right now," she said, "but we do need to talk about this. Last night…"

"I know," Hermione replied. Nothing more needed to be said right now. "I guess I should go get ready. My duel with Seamus starts in just over an hour."

"Of course," Minerva replied.

* * *

A little over an hour later, Minerva was finding a seat on the bleachers as the referee was calling Hermione and her former classmate, Seamus Finnegan, to come onto the mat and prepare to duel. Minerva knew that Seamus had earned a Mastery in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and worked as a Cruse Breaker for Gringots. Hermione would have quite the workout ahead of her. It occurred to Minerva that the plan had been for Hermione to purposely loose this duel, and she didn't know if somewhere in the mix of last night, than plan had been altered. She guessed she'd just have to wait and find out like everyone else.

To her surprise, moments later Rose took a seat next to her. "Professor," the newly married girl said. "I thought we could have a heart to heart."

"Is this really the time or place?" Minerva asked quietly.

"Well," Rose said, "as you and mum are pretty much attached at the hip unless one of you is dueling…yes, I think this time and place is quite perfect."

"Very well," Minerva muttered. "Say as you will."

"You love her?"

"Yes," she replied with a hiss. She really did not want to be having this conversation in a public place. However, to do otherwise would cause a scene, which would make it an even more public conversation.

"How long?"

"Since long before you were born, Rose," Minerva replied. Lying to a Weasley was beyond stupid if you weren't certain you could get away with it. The temper to match the red hair was legendary. "My feelings began to develop during her seventh year at Hogwarts, though I did or said nothing about it. We kept in touch for a few years after she graduated, which only fueled my feelings, and then when she married your father…well, let's just say that I nursed a broken heart for a number of years before I could actually talk to her without drinking myself to sleep that night."

"And when you guys met up here?" Rose asked.

"The feelings I thought I buried more than twenty years ago reared their ugly head," Minerva spat. "Long story short, your mother figured it out, told me the feelings were mutual, and the last few days have been a living hell."

"So you had a thing for my mum when she was younger than me?" Rose inquired, look of obvious discomfort on her face.

"It was far more innocent back then, Rose," Minerva said gently. "A friendship developed, which was more than I have ever had with a student before. Your mother was remarkably mature for her age, which was probably a result of the war. By the time my feelings developed into something more than a great fondness she was actively dating your father. I honestly didn't think the relationship would last, so I waited, with some vague hope than after they parted ways, she'd start to see me as more than friends. When she told me they were engaged…"

Minerva paused, regaining her composure. "I went to their engagement party, during which your father got quite sloshed, and announced to the whole room that your mother had told him that had he not been there, she would have stayed at Hogwarts with me."

"Ouch," Rose said, looking sympathetic.

Minerva nodded, pain welling up inside her at the very memory of that night. "Granted, your father had no idea how I felt, and when your mother had told him that, I suspect she'd meant that she would have stayed at Hogwarts to teach, at my side."

"Still," Rose frowned, "it's a wonder you didn't blast him into oblivion, if you really cared for her that much, then."

"It crossed my mind," Minerva chuckled. "Rather, I went back to the castle and got far more drunk than he had been at the party. They got married six months later, and then your mother stopped coming around. I didn't pursue the relationship, in any capacity at all, after that."

"Wow," Rose breathed. "And then you get together twenty odd years later. That's actually kind of romantic."

"We are not _together_, Rose." Minerva said quietly. "She is still married to your father, and what happened last night was wrong. It will not happen again unless there comes a time where she is no longer bound to him."

"Do you want her to leave my dad?" Rose asked.

"Not for me," Minerva replied. "I do want her to leave him, but I'd feel that way even if we were merely friends. They are not happy together, and just as I felt when they were only dating, she is wasting her potential…no offense to your dad, Rose."

The redhead shrugged. "None taken."

The conversation ended there, as the duel between Hermione and Seamus began to intensify. For the last fifteen minutes, the two Gryffindor alumni had each been testing the other's strengths and weaknesses. Now the duel really began.

* * *

Hermione was exhausted. After an hour and a half of very aggressive dueling, she had disarmed Seamus and taken her second win. It wasn't until moments after her victory that she remembered that she'd been planned to throw the match. At the beginning of the duel she had noticed her daughter talking to Minerva, and that reminded her of the situation she was facing.

So she did what she always did when presented with a problem; she thought. She thought about Minerva and what the older woman meant to her. She thought about Ron and the life they had build. She thought about the dreams she'd had as a younger woman, and how she'd kept telling herself that she'd get back to focusing on them, and never had.

It was always something: settling into a marriage, getting finically stable, being pregnant with Rose, being pregnant with Hugo, raising two children who were only thirteen months apart, dealing with toddlers, handling accidental magic, she and Ron's marriage starting to crumble, essentially raising two children alone, getting the kids ready for Hogwarts…

By the time Rose and Hugo were both off to Hogwarts, she and Ron had already agreed that the marriage only existed for public appearance. They agreed they were both okay with that. They could just be friends with the as needed benefits. She had started focusing on spell development when the children were dealing with accidental magic, in an effort to better control that, and by the time she had the freedom to start focusing on herself, she'd already settled into a routine of doing what she did, and hadn't come up with a different excuse to forget all the things she'd wanted to do before.

Thoughts about the life she realized was never in her plans fueled her like gasoline on a fire as she dueled. A rage began to build and in the moment that she disarmed Seamus, she realized what she wanted to do; what she had to do.

Hermione sat with a quill in hand in her and Minerva's room. The older witch had left a note saying that she was going for a walk to think things through, and not to wait up, so Hermione knew she would not be disturbed as she began to write.

_Dear Ron,_

_I want a divorce…_

* * *

**_Please review! _**


	11. Chapter 11

**Another Dueling update for you guys! You know, I wrote this chapter about two paragraphs at a time over the course of the last two weeks, in between working 40 hours a week, dealing with my two kids, and my husband, AND my pathetic excuse of a social life... it's a wonder I ever get any writing done. Please review! I could really use the encouragement this week. :)**

* * *

Minerva didn't return back to the hotel until almost eight the next morning. She'd gone for a walk, ended up on the other side of the city on a pier overlooking Ellis Island, and sat there on a bench until the sun began to rise. She had not realized so much time had passed, but even when the bright reds began blinding her as the new sun rose above the water, she did not rush back to the hotel. Despite all of the anxiety surrounding her current situation, Minerva McGonagall felt more at peace right now than she had in decades. No matter how things with Hermione turned out, the older witch knew she would never regret what had happened between them, and always look back on this week as one of the most monumental of her life.

As Minerva reached for the door handle to she and Hermione's room, she felt a twinge of guilt; she had promised Hermione that they would talk, and then she'd gone and disappeared. Now of course, she was exhausted and wanted nothing but to crawl into bed.

She turned the handle and walked in, and upon seeing Hermione hopping on one foot trying to get her leg into a pair of jeans, she chuckled. "Having issues?" she asked.

"Minerva!" Hermione exclaimed as she toppled over into one of the beds. "That was some walk you took."

Minerva blushed. "Sorry. I know I agreed that we would talk, but I needed to think things through first. And now, I'm afraid I'm quite tired. I have not slept."

Hermione smiled. "It's alright. That gave me some time to think as well. I have to go down and watch the duel with Rose - James is competing today – and then this evening I promised to have dinner with Harry. It looks like we might have to wait to talk until tomorrow afternoon."

Minerva nodded. She could read between the lines of what Hermione was saying. She wanted to sit with Rose to get a better feel for how her daughter was handling the situation. Dinner with Harry was to talk to her best friend about what was going on. Minerva understood that. _In fact_, she thought, _I probably ought to check in with Robert and Malcolm and update them._

Minerva watched with evident interest as Hermione finished dressing. "You are so beautiful," she murmured, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Hermione's face lit up, and then pounced the older witch, forcing her to lay on her back. Before the older witch could react, Hermione had planted a searing kiss on her lips, grinned, and then hopped back up and was out the door without another word, leaving a stunned Minerva in her wake.

* * *

Hermione couldn't help herself. She was more or less skipping down the hall, grin plastered on her face as she ran her tongue over her lips, thinking of the kiss she'd just surprised Minerva with. She rationalized the kiss by saying to herself that it was merely to assure Minerva that Rose busting them had not changed how she felt., though in reality it had more to do with the Owl she's received first thing this morning.

Last night, she'd written Ron an Owl, asking for a divorce. He'd responded promptly and had said that he was fine with a divorce, agreeing that it really was inevitable. He even volunteered to take care of getting the paperwork sorted. Ron said he'd talk to Hugo if she'd talk to Rose, and that was fine with Hermione.

He'd closed the letter saying that he and Hugo would continue their camping trip unless Hermione felt they shouldn't, it upon reading that Hermione had realized that Ron and Hugo didn't know Rose had gotten married. She'd just sent off her response Owl, suggesting that they come to the Duel Off on Sunday the twenty first and stay for the last week, in order to get to know Rose's new husband. She knew he wouldn't throw a fit at the fact that Rose had eloped – it had in fact been very 'Weasley' of her to do so.

* * *

Minerva only slept for about four hours. She didn't want to sleep the day away and then be unable to rest well tonight. Being Headmistress, she had grown accustom to keeping odd hours. Showered and dressed, Minerva had made her way to her brothers' room, where she knew they would have returned to after the Duel had concluded. She had heard from Filius, who she bumped into in the hotel diner when searching for lunch, that James Roland had defeated Patrick O'Connell after nearly two hours of combat. She was glad for the young man, and from Fillius' vivid descriptions, found herself hoping for a chance to Duel the American for herself.

Minerva didn't both knocking on her brothers' door any more than she had bothered with her and Hermione's door. "Afternoon, boys," she said as she closed their door behind her.

"Min!" Malcolm greeted her, getting up and pulling her into a hug. "How's it going?"

"What he means to ask," Robert added, taking his turn to embrace her, "is how are things with Hermione? You seem to be sober and you still look happy, so I'm guessing there has been some resolution."

Minerva sat down in one of the armchairs. "Well, we kissed."

Malcolm grinned. "Just kissed?"

Minerva blushed. "Alright, we kissed quite a lot. We didn't have sex, and good thing too as Hermione's daughter showed up the next morning and was quite curious as to why we were lying in bed together, wrapped around each other."

Robert frowned. "So Rose found out there's something going on?"

Minerva nodded. "So far she has handled it with grace. She was, unsurprisingly, shocked about it all, but she talked to Hermione, and then later on she cornered me into a discussion as well. I think she is more concerned about her mother's welfare than she is about what this could mean for her family."

"Good for Rose," Malcolm said approvingly. "So is Hermione going to leave her husband?"

Minerva sighed. "She has not said as of yet, but in fairness, we have not had any time to speak. I believe she may be leaning in that direction, by the way she's been acting around me, but I dare not get my hopes up too high."

"And if she does leave," Robert said, "then what are you going to do?"

"Never let her out of my sight again!" Minerva exclaimed, as if it was obvious.

Robert rolled his eyes. "I meant about Hogwarts."

"Oh," she said. "I'm not sure. I would have to discuss it with Hermione, if it came to that."

"You aught to discuss it with Fillius," Malcolm suggested. "As he would become Head of Hogwarts if you should retire."

"Term starts in just over six weeks," Robert pointed out. "Unless you want to remain Headmistress for the first year of your dalliance with Hermione, you need to start the process of retiring soon. Perhaps you could tell Fillius that you are considering not returning next term, but not tell him why until you know what direction things are going with Hermione."

Minerva nodded. She knew that a lot had to be put in order for her to retire, but she knew that she would only leave Hogwarts if that was what it took to be with Hermione. If they didn't get together, she would stay at the school for the rest of her days. If they did, there still remained the option of Hermione moving to Hogwarts with her, and she could continue on as Headmistress with the younger witch at her side. Hell, Hermione may be interested in taking up a teaching post. "I will speak with Fillius as soon as I've had a chance to talk to Hermione. We spoke briefly this morning and agreed to set time aside to do so tomorrow after the morning's duel…"

"Rose Weasley at Victor Krum," Malcolm interrupted. "I am looking forward to watching that pair go at it! A Tri-Wizard contestant versus someone personally trained by the Tri-Wizard Champion."

Minerva rolled her eyes. "It's Rose Roland now – she and James Roland eloped last weekend – and I'm fairly sure she's wipe Krum off the mat with ease. Harry taught her well, and she is Hermione's daughter after all."

Robert chuckled. "Biased much?"

Minerva crossed her arms and smirked. "Absolutely."

* * *

Hermione slid into the booth across from Harry at the small diner that they had chosen. They might have eaten at the hotel, but Hermione didn't want to be interrupted. Before her daughter, before Minerva, she had to tell Harry that she and Ron would be getting divorced.

"So out with it, 'Mione," Harry said as soon as their drinks had been served. "Something's up, I can see it in your eyes."

"Something's happened in the last week and a half," Hermione started.

"Obviously," Harry chuckled. "You look happy. Happier than you have in years."

"There's more than just happy feelings involved," Hermione continued. "It's been a bit of a whirlwind. I suppose the best place to start is with the thing that will impact you the most. You see, Ron and I are getting divorced."

Harry took a sharp intake of breath. "I knew things weren't good between you guys, but I didn't think they were so bad that you'd be giddy at the prospect of ending it. Not to mention, even if you were ecstatic about a split, you wouldn't let it show. It's not proper, and it's unlike you to not be proper, which leads me to believe that there's a bigger picture."

Hermione nodded, waiting for her friend to come to the obvious conclusion. Thank Merlin, some of her legendary deductive skills had worn off on Harry sometime in the last thirty-five years.

"There's someone new?" Harry said weakly after a minute.

"Yes," she confirmed. "And for the record, my integrity is mostly in tact – we have kissed but nothing more."

"Someone in the competition?" Harry asked, looking rather puzzled.

Hermione nodded again. "It's only been going on a week. I feel like I've been hit upside the head with as dizzying as this whole thing has been."

Harry said nothing, and Hermione could tell he was thinking. His face always got a certain look when he was trying to puzzle something out, a look that she thought was a cross between eating a lemon and being hit with a _confundous_ charm.

After a minute, Harry suddenly looked up sharply, and wide eyed he whispered, "Minerva?"

"Well done, Watson," Hermione sighed, glad he had been able to work it out on his own.

"Bloody hell!" Harry gasped, flopping back and leaning on the backrest of his side of the booth. "Are you serious?"

Hermione frowned and looked at the table, unsure of what was going through her friends mind at the moment. "Are you mad?"

"Honestly I'm a bit conflicted," Harry admitted. "I'm thrilled for Minerva. It's been a good ten years since she's been with anyone, and it's about bloody time she find someone special. I'm happy to see you this happy. I'm sad that you and Ron are splitting. I hope it will be amicable…"

"It will be," Hermione assured him.

"…I am a bit disappointed in both you and Minerva that this developed at all, while you and Ron were still married. And to top it all off, I'm bloody confused about how this all happened."

Hermione understood Harry's disappointment. Hell, she was disappointed in herself on that mark. This was not the kind of example she wanted to set for her children, and she was not naïve enough to think that Rose wouldn't tell her brother what she had walked in on. However, that was how it was. She made her bed, and she would lay in it. She just prayed that the price of her finally being happy would not be too high.

* * *

**Next time on Dueling... "I asked Ron for a divorce," Hermione said, breaking the ice on the conversation they were about to have, "And he's agreed."**


End file.
